Raspberry Cravings
by Aachi
Summary: Xelloss proposes an interesting arrangement with Lina and Zelgadis. However, whenever the Mazoku is involved, things quickly become much more complicated than they should be. Xelloss/Lina/Zelgadis. post-series. lemons.
1. Questionable Proposal

Summary: Xelloss proposes an interesting arrangement with Lina and Zelgadis. Xelloss/Lina/Zelgadis

Author's Notes: This is a story with a group relationship in mind that will turn explicit in later chapters. There will also be eventual sado-masochism, bondage, and other things like that (there's a demon involved in this after all). If that bothers you I suggest you turn around now. But don't worry! There's also romance and emotional and fluffy stuff too. There is also quite a bit of slapstick humor and snarky back and forth.

I've given you the necessary warnings so flames are not welcome. However, constructive criticism is welcome, but please be polite about it.

Update - November 2014 - I'm FINALLY continuing this story and I felt that to go along with that I needed to revise the chapters that are already up as well (chapters 1-13). If you've already read what I've had up of this story and you don't want to re-read all 13 chapters before the long-time-coming 14th chapter, you don't need to worry. All the revisions are just sentence fluency, grammar, more scene details and such. There's no big story changes in the revisions or anything.

Also, for this story, I should point out that I went with the manga in regards to Pakota. Like it's mentioned, he's in Duclis' human body rather than like in the anime where he ended up still being a plushie. If you haven't seen manga Duclis, you should. He's drawn cute :D

Be sure to check out my Slayers drawings that go with this story and the Xelloss sculpture I made back when this story was new. There's a link on my profile. You can also get there by just going to Deviantart and my user name there is aachi-chan.

Disclaimer: I don't own Slayers. This whole fan story is just for fun. I don't make a dime for any of this.

So enough with the author's notes… on with the show!

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><p>The restaurant patrons of the Dragon's Nest Inn tried in vain not to blatantly stare at the spectacle that was Lina and Gourry's usual eating habits.<p>

With them was Amelia, who ate her food with only slightly more table manners, and Zelgadis who nonchalantly drank his tea, completely accustomed to the dinnertime behavior of his companions.

Between the fighting for random food and talking with their mouths full, the same dinner conversations that had been brought up countless times before were discussed. Where should we head next? What do you think Filia's up to these days? I heard of this bandit gang with this amazing treasure. What's Xelloss doing here?

After Gourry's unexpected question, everyone looked up to see where he was pointing. The mysterious priest was indeed walking through the entrance of the restaurant and heading toward them with a small wave of greeting.

"I'm pleased you remembered my name this time Gourry-san." He greeted them as he walked up to their table, "How is everyone this evening?"

Zelgadis narrowed his eyes, "What is it that you want this time Xelloss? Is there some threat you want us to stop for you that even Mazoku don't want? Or are you just here to aggravate us?" He was already annoyed with Xelloss' presence. It didn't help that he'd just happened to be thinking about past events that involved trying to find Claire Bible manuscripts and the infuriating priest before the demon showed up. As the old saying goes 'Speak of the devil and he shall come.' Apparently, Xelloss' aptitude for being obnoxious allowed him to be summoned when someone was only thinking about him.

Xelloss waved his hand in dismissal, "Oh no, nothing like that this time. Although, I do always enjoy the taste of your aggravation." He smiled pleasantly as Zelgadis' scowl deepened, "I've actually been granted some time off until further notice. There are no pressing matters that need to be tended to right now."

If anything, Zelgadis' look turned even more suspicious but Lina was the one to say something, "So what? You want to spend your vacation with us?"

Xelloss merely gave her a secretive smile, so she added, "I guess hanging around a walking buffet of negative emotions is as good a vacation for a demon as any, right?" She shrugged, not really caring.

"Quite right Lina-san," Xelloss chimed.

"Well, sit your butt down then," from under the table she kicked out the empty chair nearest to him to prompt him into sitting down. "No reason for you to stand if you're gonna stay."

"Why thank you," He smiled at her as he sat down in the offered chair, propping his staff up against the table.

Zelgadis scoffed at her, "Why invite him in?"

She scoffed right back at him, "Because it's Xelloss. If he wants to hang around us he's gonna do it no matter what we say or do. It's just easier to be civil about it."

The demon summoned a cup of tea, "How insightful of you Lina-san. You would be right." He gave her an approving smile.

The chimera knew she was right but that didn't mean he couldn't complain about it.

Ignoring Zelgadis grumblings, Xelloss bought a piece of strawberry shortcake from a passing waitress with a dessert cart.

Amelia wanted to bring back regular conversation, so she decided to include their newly returned traveling companion, "So, Xelloss-san, any exciting news that you can tell us about since we saw you last?"

He raised his fork in the air as if to make a point, "Why I do in fact! One that I'm sure you'll all find interesting."

Zelgadis grumbled a sarcastic 'I'm sure', but Gourry and Amelia were curious. Lina only seemed mildly interested in what Xelloss had to say. She was really more captivated by the last leg of mutton Gourry had on his plate and was trying to sneak it out from under his nose while his attention was elsewhere.

"I had some business recently in Xoana." He started out, "And there was some interesting rumors involving Queen Martina and King Zangulus." He almost giggled at their titles. For the pair of inept avengers to be royalty was still a very entertaining notion.

Midway through eating her newly acquired leg of mutton, Lina stopped to groan while pinching the bridge of her nose, "What are those two idiots up to now?"

Her reaction made his smile grow, "Well it seems that they're currently on a journey to personally inspect their lands while the former king rules temporarily until their return. However, the rumor is that their journey is just a pretense for some sort of personal goals that the two of them never fulfilled before they got married. They've decided to team up to accomplish their personal missions." He chuckled a little, "Though none of the rumors can decide what those goals might be."

Lina put her forehead in her hands and leaned on the table, "Are you saying we should expect Martina and Zangulus to show up and make our lives miserable again?"

"Perhaps," He continued his mischievous smile, "I didn't have time to see for myself what the whole truth really was, but that was my impression as well."

Lina roughly ran her fingers through her hair in frustration, "I thought we'd never have to see those two again. Shouldn't they be busy ruling a country and making heirs?"

"There's no reason they couldn't work on that second objective while they traveled." Zelgadis stated bluntly.

Lina and Amelia blushed, and Gourry had to ask, "How do you make hairs?"

For an answer he got whacked with the picked-clean bone from the leg of mutton that he never noticed was missing from his plate, "Heirs you idiot, not hairs. Heirs are children."

Xelloss finally took a bite of his cake. It was so deliciously sweet and Lina's anger was like a bittersweet dark chocolate topping. It was something he always enjoyed.

His thoughts were interrupted by her glaring at him from across the table, "I was going to play along with your game for a while but now you've gone and put me in a sour mood." She pointed at him accusingly, "Why are you here Xelloss?"

He blinked at her innocently. Everyone was focused on him again. "I told you Lina-san, I'm just here on holiday."

She continued to glare at him, "That's bull. You might not be here on an official mission but there's some other reason for you being here that you're not telling us and its more than just 'Lina and friends dinner special'."

Zelgadis had been trying his best to ignore the demon's existence but turned to glare at him again as well. His earlier suspicions that the Mazoku was up to something was looking to be right. But, as far as he was concerned, everyone should be suspicious of Xelloss at all times and for all reasons.

The demon sighed and put his chin in his left hand and made a show of looking dejected. "Nothing gets past you Lina-san. I was hoping to catch up a bit more before we discussed this." He pouted as cutely as he could, "Oh well."

The chimera scowled at him, "Well. Out with it then. If you have something you came here to discuss then stop wasting time."

"You're both so impatient." He continued to pout, then decided he'd better get on with it before they got even more demanding.

"Very well," He leaned into the table, switching to a more business-like mode, "The main reason I've come is to propose an arrangement of sorts with the two of you." He said as he looked from Zelgadis and Lina.

"What kind of arrangement?" Zelgadis looked more suspicious than ever, "Did your master order you to offer us this?"

Xelloss waved his hand in dismissal again, "Oh no. As I said before, I'm not on any mission right now. Though I admit I had to ask my Mistress Beastmaster for permission before discussing this with you." He smirked in his 'there's much more to it than that but I'm not going to tell you' way of his, "But I assure you, this is a personal project and is in no way a part of any orders."

If anything, they looked more confused, "So what? You want our help to track down some sort of object that would be personally useful to you or something?" Lina was stumped, she couldn't figure out what sort of arrangement the Mazoku would want from just Zelgadis and her that was personal.

"Oh no, nothing like that," He glanced around the table and saw the inquisitive faces of Amelia and Gourry, "As this is something I'm only offering to the two of you, perhaps we should discuss this matter in private?"

Amelia looked somewhat offended but before she could protest, he picked up his staff from where it leaned against the table next to him and as soon as it was in his hand the orb started to glow. In a split second the world around them flashed black and just as quickly as it had happened they were back in the inn's restaurant, only…

"Where the hell is everyone?" Lina and Zelgadis's chairs screeched on the hardwood floor as they both stood up abruptly and glowered at him, "What did you do Xelloss?"

He leaned his staff back up against the table. "Please do calm down. I didn't do anything with the people, rather I did something with us." He gestured around him, "I created a pocket dimension for us to have our conversation in so no one would bother us."

Now that it was brought to their attention, Lina and Zelgadis noticed that the room wasn't quite right. Aside from missing all the people, it just felt… off somehow.

"This is kinda like when we fought those Mazoku Zuuma contracted," Lina thought aloud.

"Creating subspaces and pocket dimensions is a common ability among stronger Mazoku." His smile turned somewhat smug, "Although I'm sure I don't have to tell you that my pocket dimensions are much more secure than others you've visited. Not only that, but this is a dimension in time and space. When I return us to the others, no time will have passed for them."

Zelgadis made an effort to seem like he wasn't even remotely impressed, "This is all a very elaborate way to talk to us."

Xellos shrugged, "No not really, it wasn't that hard for me to make. This is actually much easier to talk to the two of you without anyone else trying to be nosy." He picked up his fork again and took another bite of his cake. "Now that you know I didn't do anything suspicious, would you mind sitting back down? It's much easier to hold a conversation when everyone is at the same eye level."

Zelgadis growled at him and sat back down in a huff. Lina sat down again as well, "I just bet you have lots of powers that we've never seen before huh?"

"Oh you have no idea Lina-san."

There was only so much of the demon's smugness Zelgadis could take, "So you've got us all alone now, what the hell is this arrangement you want to discuss?"

"Ah well, I suppose it would be more accurate to call it a partnership of sorts." He sipped his tea, making sure to drag out his explanation as long as possible just to pile onto Zelgadis' growing irritation. If Lina's anger was like bittersweet dark chocolate then Zelgadis' irritation was like roasted nuts. It had a smoky taste to it with a bit of saltiness.

Zelgadis growled again, growing more impatient, "And?"

Xellos put his cup down, "The proposal I have is mutually beneficial to all three of us." He considered his words carefully, "But because of what it is and the personality of you two, I've decided to sweeten the deal for you in hopes that you'll agree."

If possible, Lina and Zelgadis felt more clueless by what Xelloss could have in mind.

"If you agree to this arrangement I'm prepared to offer you any help that you ask of me in any future endeavors until the agreement is broken. That is, of course, assuming that the help you ask of me doesn't interfere with my master's or my agendas and doesn't pose a threat to the Mazoku race."

Lina looked thoughtful, "So what you're saying is, you'd actually protect us if we were attacked, rather than treating our battles like some kind of spectator sport. Oh! And help us find treasure?" she added somewhat excitedly. To which, he nodded to both questions.

Zelgadis looked skeptical, "What about the Claire Bible manuscripts? Would you actually help find them rather than destroying them?"

Xelloss beamed at him, "Why of course you would ask about that Zelgadis-san!" he chuckled at the chimera's scowl at being accused of being predictable. "To answer your question, yes, I would help you find Claire Bible manuscripts." He wagged his finger in the air, "But I must insist that you let me read them first to ensure there's nothing in there that would be harmful to my race."

Zelgadis still didn't trust him, "But would you actually let me read the ones you deemed 'safe', or just destroy them and tell me to trust you that it didn't have anything helpful to me in them?"

The Mazoku merely grinned at him and reached into his bag, "So untrusting, Zelgadis-san." He pulled out an aged book to show him, "Does this prove my sincerity?"

"Is that-?" Zelgadis reached out to grab it but Xellos snatched it away just in time, "I don't believe we've made a deal yet." He said as he held the book away tauntingly.

Zelgadis snarled, "Well then get on with it! What's this arrangement you think we'd want but might not agree to?"

Lina interjected, "Yeah, it must really be something if you start out your negotiations with your bonus offer."

Xelloss put the book back in his bag and smiled at them with his eyes half open. "I propose…" He drew out his sentence, always the one for dramatics, "a partnership of a… sexual nature."

"WHAT?!"

Lina gasped so hard she almost inhaled some of her hair and Zelgadis was sure he was choking on his own heart. They both blushed hard and immediately started babbling protests, complaints and questions.

"What the hell?!"

"Why us?"

"Have you gone insane?"

"Why _both_ of us?"

"Where'd this idea come from?"

"Can Mazoku even _have_ sex?"

"Do Mazoku even _want_ sex?"

Xelloss was prepared for the outbursts of course and just relished in their shock, embarrassment and anger as they continued to babble at him until they calmed down enough to converse with again. It was actually turning out better than he expected. He was prepared for spells and attacks to be thrown at him, but he figured the complete shock of it was enough to keep them both from thinking about attacking.

"Hey! You paying attention?!" Lina was yelling at him.

"Of course I am Lina-san, I was merely waiting for the two of you to calm down." He smiled at her. "Now that you seem to be ready to talk like rational people again maybe I can clear some things up for you."

Zelgadis butted in, face still as red as his blue skin would allow, "Yeah, why don't you 'clear things up for us'. What the hell is this about? Why the hell would a demon be interested in us? Do Mazoku even have sex? Not only that but why would you ask _both_ of us this?" He was completely thrown for a loop by the whole matter.

"So many questions Zelgadis-san!" He smiled at him cheerily, to which the chimera just growled at him. "But I do love the fact that both of you battered me with questions rather than outright saying 'no'."

They both looked shocked again for a moment. Neither of them had even thought about saying 'no'. They were too preoccupied with wanting to know 'why?'

Before they had any real time to reflect on that thought, Xelloss jumped into his explanation. "Well let's start with why a Mazoku would want a bedmate." He smiled happily at them, as if he were discussing his favorite flavor of ice cream. "For those of us that take on human form frequently, we eventually develop human desires."

He pointed to his half-eaten cake, "Food is a good example. I don't need it to survive but I enjoy it and have a fondness for sweets." He stopped to open his eyes half way to look at them. "The same goes for sexual actions. Mazoku do not reproduce in the same manner as humans, however this physical form I take has senses identical to a human's, allowing me to taste sweets as well as feel pleasure."

He smiled as their blushes deepened and their embarrassment grew. He continued on, "Since I can feel that pleasure, why wouldn't I want it?"

They mumbled sounds that seemed like they were in agreement with his statement, though both of them were taking turns staring off into the floor and ceiling.

Xelloss decided that their combined embarrassment tasted like raspberries; mostly tangy and tart but still somewhat sweet.

Lina turned thoughtful, and finally looked in Xelloss' general direction, though still not into his eyes, "At least I've got one thing figured out." She gestured to Zelgadis, "Considering you're not biologically programmed to look for a partner of the opposite sex and you're asking him this, I take it you don't have a gender preference?" The chimera's face turned redder and he looked like he wanted to crawl in a hole and die.

"Quite right Lina-san." He smiled, "As far as I know, none of the Mazoku who've taken an interest in pleasure of their physical forms has ever preferred one gender over another. There's many reasons for that, most of which is as you say, I'm not biologically programmed to see sex as a means to reproduce. Another reason is because, since this body is merely a sort of advanced shell or projection, I'm not permanently bound to the male form. I just prefer it as it suits my purposes much more than a female body would."

"You can take the form of a woman?" Lina looked fascinated. She'd always suspected that would be the case but never had any proof of her theory before. She could have always asked him before, but she never really liked the idea of traveling along with all her companions and randomly asking Xelloss if he could sprout boobs. That seemed like one of those questions you secretly held onto until one of those nights when everyone had been drinking and having fun and you could later blame such an embarrassing and personal question on being drunk.

He merely gave her a smug smile and wagged his finger in the air. "I can take the shape of a woman if I must," He winked at her conspiratorially and said in a stage whisper just to infuriate Zelgadis, "But I see no reason to for this proposal. You see, Zelgadis-san goes both ways."

Hearing this, the chimera's eyes practically popped out of his head and he thought it might really be possible to die of embarrassment as he could feel his heart beat in his head. "How could you possibly know that!?" He screeched in a very unmanly way. "I've never said anything to anybody about anything like that!"

Xelloss gave him a mock-offended look, "Mazoku are empaths of the highest level. To me, all your emotions and attraction to anyone might as well be written on a large signboard."

As Zelgadis slumped in his chair, sputtering nonsensical objections and looking miserably embarrassed, Lina nonchalantly rubbed salt in his wounds, "I think the fact that you didn't outright try to beat him to death when he made his suggestion was proof enough that you weren't completely straight."

He looked at her like he wanted to kill her.

Xelloss shook his finger at her, "Now now Lina-san, I believe they say that's the pot calling the kettle black."

She turned and gave him a dirty look, but eventually sighed in resignation and shrugged, "What can I say?"

Zelgadis gave her an evil grin, "You can say that despite your prudish behavior you've got a gutter mind like the rest of us. No wonder you were so fascinated to find out that Xelloss could take the form of a woman if he wanted."

Lina looked thoroughly offended, "Prudish?! Who are you calling prude? Now _that's_ being a hypocrite."

Xelloss was able to get their attention before they could fall into a full blown verbal battle. "Anyway…" they both stopped to look at him, "I believe I still have some information you want before you make your decisions."

Lina coughed and looked away, "Uh right…" It took her a moment to remember where they were in their conversation. "So... why humans and not other Mazoku?"

The demon shook his head at her, "Why I thought that much would be obvious! The negative emotions from humans are the most nourishing and you two are always dripping with such delicious negative emotions."

Zelgadis tried his best to ignore the suggestive way the demon had said that, "But isn't pleasure a positive emotion? Wouldn't that make you ill or something?"

Xelloss made a show of shaking his head and sighing, "You dissapoint me, Zelgadis-san. I thought you would have figured that out by now. Amelia-san only assumed that positive emotions would incapacitate me and she convinced you that was the case. I only went along with that so you would let your guard down and I could steal the Darkstar weapon at the right moment."

He shrugged with his hands upturned as if to say 'I can't believe I have to explain this' just to anger Zelgadis more. "Mazoku thrive on negative emotions, I don't recall ever saying that positive ones would make me ill. We just prefer negativity."

He turned serious for a moment, "Though I admit. It wasn't hard to act ill with Amelia-san screeching in my face with a megaphone that 'life is wonderful.'"

Lina laughed, "No, I can't imagine that _anyone_ would be happy with that experience."

Zelgadis rubbed his forehead. He could feel a headache coming on. '_I don't think all the blood rushing to my face is helping to prevent a headache any_.'

Finally ready to ask the questions that he and Lina had been unconsciously avoiding until now, "So… why ask us? Why ask _both_ of us?"

Xelloss smiled and opened his lavender eyes to look at them fully, "That," He pointed his finger making them think for a brief moment that he would use his irritating catch phrase, but eventually finished with, "… is the easiest question of all to answer."

"As I've said before, the two of you are constantly dripping in negative emotions. From anger, irritation, confusion and…" He chuckled, "embarrassment. Not only that but you're both incredibly strong for humans, and you're both physically attractive." He winked at the two of them, renewing they're blushes.

"With that list, what Mazoku that wasn't busy trying to kill you wouldn't be attracted to you two?" Neither of them answered, they didn't really have any ideas about demon preferences besides what Xelloss had just told them.

"As to why ask you both? Well, why not?" His smile turned suggestive again, "If one of you turns me down, the other might still be interested and if you both decide you want in on this… 'partnership'… well then there would just be more fun for everyone." He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Dirty thoughts raced through the humans minds and they blushed even harder. Zelgadis was almost certain he felt blood in his nose.

"The fact that you've listened to me this far, proves that you're both curious by my proposal, if nothing else. But allow me to continue to influence your decision." He lazily cut off another piece of his cake with his fork. "As you both know, I am aware of your emotions. Since it would take forever for either of you to admit anything, if you ever did, allow me to lay it out on the table for you."

Lina and Zelgadis both had a sense of foreboding, but neither dared to interrupt him.

"Another reason I asked you both about this is because each of you is attracted to and lust after the other..." He opened his eyes and looked at them both from across the table. His expression a definition of a seductive gaze, it sent chills up both of their spines, "And I know you are both attracted to me as well."

They opened their mouths, about to protest, but just as quickly, each of them decided there was no point. He could sense their emotions, there was no hiding it, and they both knew that Xelloss didn't lie. So instead they both hung their heads in mortified embarrassment while Xelloss continued to happily eat his cake, now with an overwhelming taste of raspberries.

Lina was the first to recover enough to continue, "So if you knew all this, why bother sweetening this deal with your promise of help?"

Xelloss cheerfully replied, "Well as the two of you spitefully pointed out earlier, you're both quiet prudish." He could feel their embarrassment immediately turn into anger directed at him. He continued on feigning ignorance, "I knew neither of you would likely agree if our arrangement were based solely on intimate activities, so I decided to appeal to your other desires. Such as helping you find Claire Bible manuscripts and treasure."

Lina scoffed at him and said sarcastically, "Boy, you sure know how to seduce somebody."

He smiled at her and once again feigned ignorance, "Oh my no. Up until now we've only been discussing the vital information pertaining to this proposal so you can make an informed decision." He opened his eyes and looked straight into hers, as he leaned in closer toward her with that lustful gaze, she could feel the shiver run up her spine again but this time it was accompanied by warmth in the pit of her stomach, "I haven't _begun_ to seduce you yet."

He sat upright in his chair again and turned on his usual cheer. "So! Any thoughts on all of this?"

Lina did her best to shake off the lingering sensations and coughed to help clear her mind a bit. "Well it's definitely something to consider." The redness that just wouldn't go away darkened again, she wondered if it was possible to get stuck in a permanent blush. "It sure sounds… interesting." She stared intently at an imaginary spot on the table in front of her, "And as you said, its not like I hadn't thought about … uh… stuff... with you guys before. "

She cleared her throat again and tried to pretend like she hadn't just admitted that huge, embarrassing secret that was apparently not that much of a secret to begin with. "There's more than just our hormones and treasure to consider though." She looked over to the chair that should contain Gourry, with some confusion and worry.

"Ah. I can be of help with that." She looked to the demon priest quizzically, "If you're worried about Gourry-san's feelings, you shouldn't. I can assure you that at the present time his feelings toward you are just an insanely obedient loyalty."

She looked taken aback but not entirely shocked.

"He could have romantic feelings toward you one day, but in order for that to happen, you would have to make the first move. And considering your intense confusion when it comes to him, I doubt that would be anytime soon."

He continued on without noticing her scowl at him for talking about her feelings so openly, and in front of Zelgadis too. "You love him but you can't decide if its sisterly, friendship or romantic."

She continued to glare at him but nothing specific came to mind that she could yell at him. She felt slightly better when he set his sights on Zelgadis though.

"As for you," He pointed at him, and the chimera shot him a warning look but it went unnoticed again. "You worry about hurting Amelia-san's feelings unnecessarily. She's more interested in Pakota-san who now lives within Duclis' body. I gather that she finally figured out that you lost interest in her a long time ago." He made a 'tsk' sound and shook his finger and head in mock disapproval. "That's so unkind… stringing a girl along for so long Zelgadis-san."

Zelgadis snapped, "What business is it of yours?"

He just smiled back, "It's not, and I don't care. I just thought I'd ease both of your minds. After all, if you don't feel any obligation to those around you, you're more likely to agree to my arrangement."

"And who says we would agree to something like that with a bastard like you?" What Xelloss had said before was true. He was attracted to him, but it definitely wasn't for his smug and obnoxious personality.

He may have imagined less than chaste things pertaining to Lina and Xelloss and other people before. His body may have been magically altered, but mentally he was still a human male at the peak of his maturity. Whatever dirty thoughts might have crossed his mind before, he'd never seriously considered any type of intimate relationship with either of them. Now the prospect was placed before him and he wasn't really sure what to think or if he could handle either of their personalities on a much deeper level.

Xelloss got up out of his chair and leaned in close to him, giving him the same look he'd given Lina when he talked about seduction. It had the same effect on the chimera. A tingle ran up his spine and warmth grew in the pit of his stomach.

"You should know by now that half of the things I say and do are just a game, designed to bring out negative emotions for me to feast on. Yours and Lina-san's are so delicious it's hard not to try to constantly bring out even more."

He lightly grabbed Zelgadis chin in one hand and the chimera didn't resist. He was still too entranced by the deep look of lust in the demon's eyes.

"But if you're looking for a reason to agree with me, perhaps I should let you taste a sample?" He slowly closed the remaining distance between them, intent on allowing Zelgadis plenty of time to back out if he wanted to. However, the youth's mind had all but stopped. Even as Xelloss lips were mere inches away from his, he couldn't form a single coherent thought.

When their lips touched it was like a fire spell had hit him in the face and traveled quickly down his body until he felt like he was burning up all over. Zelgadis didn't think to contain the low groan that escaped him and when he felt Xelloss lips smirk against his he instantly regretted it.

Over on Lina's side of the table, she was certain that she'd never seen anything more arousing than what she was currently witnessing. Her mouth was slightly open and her face was beat red but she couldn't look away.

Xelloss was leaning over Zelgadis, the chimera's eyes were closed and he had a look on his face that showed he was enjoying this and he wasn't actually happy about that fact. Xelloss' eyes were closed only a short time before they opened to look straight at her as he deepened the kiss with Zelgadis.

When Xelloss' hazy gaze connected with hers, her heart jump up in her throat and she felt like she'd been hit by a fire spell herself. The warmth that was in the pit of her stomach turned into an inferno and it spread its reach even lower inside her.

Lina shivered at the feelings that started to develop in her body along with the sights she was seeing. '_Gods he's gonna turn me into a voyeur._'

The demon finally pulled away and sat back in his seat, leaving Zelgadis staring blankly off into space. However it didn't take long for the youth to fully realize what had just happened. His face turned red from a mixture of anger, embarrassment and something else he'd rather not describe.

He opened his mouth to yell at Xelloss but nothing came out. He was too flustered and confused to even figure out what exactly it was he should yell at him about. Zelgadis' face flashed a myriad of emotions for several moments until he finally settled on screaming in frustration and turned his chair toward the nearest table to face away from the other two. From there he promptly let his head fall onto the table and that's where he left it. Not saying anything.

Lina felt kind of sorry for him. His longstanding anger directed toward Xelloss combined with the cravings his body had toward the demon that Zelgadis had no say in had to be difficult to deal with. Not to mention that Lina highly suspected that the chimera had never been kissed before.

"I think you might have broke him."

Xelloss merely smiled at her and waved it off. "He'll recover." He chuckled, obviously finding all this amusing.

He winked at her, "Would you like a sample too, Lina-san?"

She waved both her hands in front of her, "No-no-no. That's quite alright. I'm just fine right now. I wouldn't want you to break my brain too."

He pouted slightly, "I see." Cheering up he added, "Well I suppose after you've seen that and with my asking you about it, there's a bit more awkwardness added to it isn't there?"

She only gave him a nervous laugh and a nod.

He smiled almost triumphantly and reached into his bag. "Very well. I suppose I should leave you two to consider things before I break both of your minds," he laughed.

Lina was fairly certain the appropriate response was to get angry at him, but she was having a hard enough time thinking straight as it was.

He pulled out the book from before and stood up to walk over to Zelgadis where he dropped it on the table in front of him, instantly startling the chimera to sit up right from where he previously laid his head on the table.

Zelgadis looked at the book in confusion, then up in Xelloss' general direction, still not wanting to look at him.

The Mazoku answered his unspoken question, "I know that we haven't struck a deal yet but I thought I would leave this for you as incentive." He pat Zelgadis on the shoulder, which made him tense up immensely. "Although I'm afraid there isn't anything that would help you find your cure in there. However it is an interesting read, you may find the information useful for other things."

He walked back toward Lina, "Of course I came bearing gifts for you as well my dear." He winked as he said the unexpected endearment. He made a gesture with his right hand and in a flourish that magicians without magic used to entertain people using slight of hand, a necklace appeared in his hand.

He let it fall to dangle from his fingers. "For you."

I was a delicate looking necklace. The pendant was small and simple, a blue stone with some simple silver filigree surrounding it and a matching silver chain.

She was about to reprimand him for thinking she would want just some regular necklace, but when she reached out to touch the pendant she could feel powerful magic in it, though unable to tell just what it was.

Before she had a chance to ask, he explained, "The spell on this necklace is for magic restoration. It will help restore the energy you burn using your magic. I can't imagine it would help you during battle but at the very least you shouldn't have to eat as much."

She gave him a 'go to hell' look and told him as much but he just laughed at her.

"No need to be like that. Just imagine all the money you could save."

"My, you're so thoughtful." She said with sarcastic poison.

He just smiled at her some more, "I like to think so."

Despite her snide comments, she was actually really interested in the necklace. She tried to snatch it out of his hands but he was too fast for her. "Uh-uh-uh." He chided her in a sing-song voice, wiggling the finger of his other hand.

He dangled it out in front of her again, "If you want this, I ask that you let me put it on for you."

She crossed her arms and scowled at him, "Fine."

Satisfied, he walked around behind her and she pulled her hair up out of the way for him to put the necklace on. But she had no idea what she'd just given him opportunity to do.

As soon as she felt his fingers on her neck she realized what was really going on. He lightly touched up her neck under the guise of pushing a few stray hairs aside. When he put the necklace on, he made sure to give her skin as many light, sensual touches as possible.

She shivered at the touches but made no attempt to stop them. The necklace was securely fastened and still right behind her, he leaned in to whisper in her ear something that struck her with déjà vu. "You've got goosebumps."

Instead of running his finger up her neck like when he had told her that at Artemay Tower, this time he breathed warm air on the left side of her neck, giving her even more goosebumps and shivers. Before she could think to escape he put his hand on the right side of her neck, preventing her from moving as he slowly licked up the expanse of skin that he just breathed on.

Over at Zelgadis' table, he was busy staring blankly at the first page of the book he'd been given, mind still reeling and trying to grasp at whatever proper emotion he should feel, when he heard Lina's sudden gasp. He turned his head just enough to look over his shoulder at what was going on behind him.

Zelgadis' eyes shot open wide upon seeing Xelloss busy kissing Lina's neck. From the emotions now emanating off of the chimera, Xelloss knew he was watching them. So he treated Zelgadis to the same sight he gave Lina before and opened his hazy lust-filled eyes to look directly at Zelgadis while he continued to kiss and lick Lina's neck, which she was so obviously enjoying.

The image did the same thing to Zelgadis that the previous scenario did to Lina. However after a few moments of staring wide eyed, he promptly turned away from them and went back to staring blankly at his open book, now with a redder face and possibly some blood in his nose.

Xelloss would have pouted if it wasn't for the fact he was still busy seducing Lina. He sighed mentally, deciding he'd better leave off of them for right now. He didn't want to push them too hard after all. He'd never get what he wanted by being overzealous. So he slowly pulled away from the sorceress and stood up straight, only leaving his fingers to linger on her neck a bit longer before walking around the table to where his staff rested.

Lina was still in a bit of a daze when Xelloss picked up his staff and said, "Well then, as I said, I'd best be off to let you two think about your decisions." He smiled and gave his staff a twirl once, just as happy-as-you-please. "I will see you both again soon." He winked at Lina and would have done the same to Zelgadis if he hadn't been sitting at the other table, facing away from him still.

Before either of them could say anything he vanished in his customary fashion and only moments afterward, the world shifted and flashed black around the two of them again and just as quickly, they were back into normal space-time.

Amelia, Gourry and everyone else in the restaurant who had been looking in their direction were all somewhat confused. To them, Lina, Zelgadis and Xelloss had been sitting at the table one second, there was a flash of black in their places another and the next, Xelloss was gone and Zelgadis was in a different spot than he was before.

With the people of the restaurant suddenly back again, Zelgadis now found himself at the table of burly bounty hunters that were next to their own table. They all looked at him in shock to see him there. He snatched up the book and apologized hastily as he stood up abruptly. In his attempt to get up quickly, his feet got tangled in the legs of his chair and he fell back hard onto the floor.

While he was struggling to uproot his wire-like hair from the hardwood floor, he was certain he could hear Xelloss' laughter as if it were a far off voice inside his own mind.

Not at all sure what was going on, but seeing that the chimera needed some help and being the closest, Gourry bent down from where he still sat at their table to help pry Zelgadis' hair free. "What happened?"

"Yeah, where'd Xelloss-san go? I thought he was going to talk to you guys." Amelia frowned, she was just about to yell at him and he went and vanished.

Zelgadis thanked Gourry for his help but pretended he didn't hear the questions. He was still blushing like mad and decided he needed to retreat before things got any worse. "Well I'm off to bed. Goodnight."

With that he turned in the direction of the stairs and did the best he could not to break into an all out run.

Over on her side of the table, Lina was finally coming to her senses again. She'd known they rejoined the normal flow of time again but could only stare off in space as Zegladis had fought the floor over possession of his hair.

She wished she'd been coherent before, so she could make her escape with Zelgadis, because now Amelia and Gourry turned to her with their questions.

"What's going on?" Amelia asked her in confusion. "And where did that book Zelgadis-san have come from?" Now that she was looking at Lina she noticed her necklace too. "And that necklace?"

Lina's mind snapped to attention. She decided it would look even more suspicious and give them time to come up with more questions if she just bolted like Zelgadis without giving them some kind of answer. So she figured Xelloss' favored technique of telling only half truths would work for her perfectly right then.

"Uh… well to make a long story short, Xelloss made a pocket dimension in time and space to negotiate with us and gave us these things as incentive for his deal."

Amelia looked impressed as well as annoyed at Xelloss power and actions. "Well what did he want?"

Lina just waved at her nervously, "Oh its nothing you'd want to know about." That was the truth, she was fairly certain Amelia wouldn't want to know that Xelloss had come to proposition them for sex.

Before either Amelia or Gourry could say anything else, Lina abruptly gave a big and obviously fake yawn. "Well I'm gonna go to bed too. See ya in the morning." Standing up, she headed toward the stairs, almost as fast as Zelgadis had.

The two remaining stared at her retreating back. "What do you think that was about?"

Gourry just scratched his head, "I don't know."

"They were awfully embarrassed about something."

"Yeah, but why would talking to Xelloss make them embarrassed?"

"Because I like raspberries."

Amelia and Gourry whipped their heads around from where they were still staring at the staircase to see Xelloss sitting back in the seat he was at before, just finishing his last bite of strawberry shortcake.

He just smiled at them and simply pointed at his empty plate and told them, "Forgot my cake." Before vanishing again, leaving the two of them with even more questions that they'd probably never get answers to.

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><p>I like to think that Xelloss has a lot of super cool powers up his sleeve like stopping time for a little bit. No one can convince me otherwise *serious face*<p>

For this fic, we're just going to pretend that the events at the end of Slayers Next went slightly different as far as the canon Lina/Gourry relationship stuff. But mostly, we're just going to pretend that kiss they had in the chaos never happened. In canon, they supposedly don't remember it anyway, so that works too lol.

Please review! I give out imaginary multi-colored cake with each review!


	2. On the way to Seyruun

A/N

Sorry for the really long explanation in the first chapter. I love explaining stuff a little too much, but I felt it was necessary. This chapter has much more action! And hints of an actual plot aside from the sexy stuff. Lol

Disclaimer: I don't own Slayers blah, blah, blah

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><p>Zelgadis had long since given up on sleeping that night. As it was, his pillow was already in shreds from his wire hair and all his tossing and turning. He couldn't stop thinking about that evening and he constantly shifted from embarrassed, aroused and then angry before the cycle would repeat itself over again.<p>

He was pretty sure this was also a part of the Mazoku's plan. He was no doubt lurking somewhere close by the inn to feed off his and Lina's turmoil of emotions. Zelgadis was actually pretty sure that Xelloss didn't care one way or the other if they agreed or not. Regardless of their answers, he was already getting benefits from his proposal.

Just as the chimera suspected, Xelloss was reclining on the roof of the inn, gazing up at moon above him, using his arms as a pillow.

He patted his stomach the same way Lina did when she was full, "My my. I haven't had such a delicious meal in a while… and they just keep serving me more." He practically giggled. "It's a good thing this type of food doesn't make you fat." His thoughts drifted off, "I wonder if either of them will go to sleep tonight."

Down in her room, Lina was having just as hard a time sleeping as Zelgadis. She was almost tempted to go out to look for some bandit gang to torment, but instead she just continued to stare up at the ceiling of her room.

She wondered if there was an underlying reason for this idea of Xelloss'- aside from the obvious benefits of course. Maybe he would eventually ask them to fight for his master. If he wanted that then the answer would always be a definite 'no'.

'_Maybe the answer is easier than I'm making it out to be and even Mazoku just want close companionship_.' She scratched her head, '_Dammit Xelloss! Just when I think I've got you figured out you go and throw me curveballs!'_

She sighed in exasperation and moved her arm over her eyes to block out the light. _'I'm thinking about this too hard.' _

She rolled over for what felt like the hundredth time and tried again to fall asleep.

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><p>When the sun came and the guests of the inn moved about their rooms getting ready for the day, Xelloss vanished from his perch.<p>

Countless miles away, he reappeared on Wolf Pack Island. As he walked through his master's compound, various lesser Mazoku saluted and greeted him. To each of them, he only gave his usual smile and a nod in recognition.

When he reached his quarters he undid the barrier spell on the door. Once inside, he immediately searched through one of the many bookcases in the room. As Mazoku didn't really need to sleep, his room was merely a place to store his belongings and was occasionally used for staying in while he recovered from injuries.

Finding what he was looking for, he took the journal off the shelf and put it into his bag. On his way back out the door he gave the room a quick look over, '_It's getting awfully dusty in here. I suppose I should let one of the maids in here sometime soon_.'

He was well known to be highly secretive, even amongst his brethren, and didn't even trust anyone to clean his belongings without him being present to ensure they didn't go through any of it. As he was always busy out and about, it made it quite difficult to keep his things dust free.

Shutting the door, he remade the barrier so that no one aside from he and his master could enter and set off to search for her.

He found her in her favorite chair in her sitting room, smoking from her cigarette pipe and drinking a glass of red wine despite the fact that it was only about seven o'clock in the morning.

As soon as he entered he gave her his customary bow in respect until she acknowledged his presence. "You're back much sooner than I expected Xelloss."

He knew that her words were just as much a question as they were her granting him permission to rise. Standing straight again he answered her unspoken question. "Your expectations were correct Zelas-sama." He inclined his head slightly and brought it back up again. "I just came back to get one of my belongings and thought I would pay my respects before I head out again."

She took another sip of wine, "So how's that project of yours going?"

He gave her a wide smile, "I only just told them the idea last night, but I'm hopeful. As I suspected, it will probably take a while to convince either of them. At the very least I've already been treated to a delicious meal that lasted most of the night."

When he said the last part he started to stare off in thought with a look on his face that could be compared to a much tamer version of the way Lina looked when she thought about dragon cuisine.

She laughed under her breath. Her priest was always amusing with his interest in humans. "If they taste as good as you say, I might just be interested enough to stop by to meet these humans of yours myself some day."

He gave her a sweeping bow, "It would be my honor to 'cook' for you Zelas-sama. It's just as much fun bringing out their anger and embarrassment as it is feasting on the emotions." He straightened back up again, "I daresay that for your tastes, you would enjoy Lina-san's anger at its peak the most." He chuckled, "That's an easy enough emotion to get too. The girl spends much of her time angry at something anyway."

"Just don't let yourself become too fascinated by these humans, Xelloss. You mustn't forget where your loyalties lie and where your efforts must be placed when I have missions for you again."

He nodded to her, "Of course Zelas-sama. I never forget."

With her cigarette pipe still between two of her fingers, she made a shooing motion at him. "Well then you'd best be off. From what you've told me before about these two, you've got a lot of work ahead of you if you're to convince them to do as you wish." She gave him a meaningful look, "And of course you never know when circumstances may once again put you on opposing sides. Best to get your fun in while you still can."

He gave her one last bow, "Of course Zelas-sama, I understand. I shall see you again when you have need of me." He vanished in his customary blur from her sight.

Now that he was gone, the Beastmaster let out an exasperated sigh just like a mother would over her son, "One of these days that boy's tastes are going to get him into trouble that he won't be able to get out of that easily."

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><p>Out on the open road, Lina and company were on their way to Seyruun. They had stopped by the Sorcerer's Guild that morning and had found that a message was there waiting for Amelia. Her father needed her to take up her duties once again.<p>

She didn't even get a chance to pout about her adventures being cut short before she read the part in the letter about why she was being summoned. The visit to Seyruun was to be just a short stop before heading to Taforashia.

The reasons for it weren't clear in the letter, but at some point Pakota had finally decided to tell his people the truth; that he was in fact their prince now living inside his retainer Duclis' body. Once they knew the truth, his people had decided that a re-crowning ceremony was in order.

Now that all the citizens were once again healthy, and rebuilding was well underway, it was expected that the people would jump at any chance they had to throw a celebration. So along with the ceremony, there was going to be a ball and various town festivities to be held in the kingdom of Taforashia.

As they walked along the dirt path, Amelia couldn't stop skipping and jumping in joy. "I just love balls don't you Lina-san?"

The sorceress in question had somewhat dark circles under her eyes. She'd barely slept at all with everything on her mind, and since she still had those things on her mind, her eyes popped open wide. "Do I like what?"

Amelia was completely oblivious to where Lina's thoughts might be. She'd just thought maybe she hadn't heard her. "Balls! I just love ball gowns. They're just the prettiest, and all the dancing is so much fun." One could almost see her daydreams sparkling in her eyes.

Lina felt immediately relieved, but stupid. At least it didn't seem anyone else had caught onto her train of thought. Zelgadis probably would have if he'd heard the conversation. Currently, he was trailing pretty far behind them.

"To tell you the truth, I've never been to a ball before. At least not as a guest. There was this one time I was hired as a bodyguard during one though." She thought back to all the women dressed up in long poofy dresses, wondering how they managed to dance in them. "I'm really not that good at dancing anyway."

Amelia stopped walking and immediately turned to face her, grabbing Lina's hands and looking into her face with big doe eyes, "You've never danced at a ball!? How sad Lina-san! Dancing at a ball is a girl's dream!" She shouted with one hand still clutching Lina's, the other pointed skyward.

"Uh well, I guess it's never really been something I've thought about."

Amelia continued on anyway, "I'll make sure you have the prettiest dress there Lina-san. Custom-made just for you by my favorite tailor. I'll do my best to make your first ball the best experience ever!"

Lina had managed to pry one of her hands free and waved at the princess, trying to calm her down. "Now really, it's not that big of a deal to me."

By then, Zelgadis had caught up to them. "Lina in a ball gown?" He couldn't help but stop and think about it for a moment. The fiery sorceress in a silver ball gown with trimmings, her hair piled up on top of her head in curls with a dainty chain wrapped around the strands artistically here and there, and a pearl necklace around her slender throat, standing out against a low neckline on the dress.

Instead of telling her anything flattering, he went with a different approach, "She'd trip trying to dance in high heels."

She elbowed him in the gut, too tired to remember that hurting Zelgadis' stone body hurt her too. "Who asked you?"

Gourry actually made a helpful remark, "Well those dresses are pretty big and long right? I bet no one would know if you just wore some flat shoes Lina."

"That's a great idea!" Amelia hit her fist into her other hand. "We'll just be sure to get you some simple slippers. It won't be a problem at all."

Zelgadis moved on ahead, "Well we better keep moving. We're not going to get to the next town before nightfall as it is and it's already almost noon."

Gourry's stomach growled, "Yeah it's about time to eat lunch." He followed after the chimera, "I hope we'll come across a river soon so we can go fishing."

Amelia followed after them and Lina took up Zelgadis' previous spot in the rear of their procession. She fingered the necklace that was under her clothing. She was hungry too, though not nearly as much as she usually was. '_Guess this thing really works_.'

Now Zelgadis was about as far ahead of them as he was behind them earlier. Deciding she wanted to ask him about something, Lina walked briskly past Gourry and Amelia to catch up with the chimera.

"Hey Zel." She started out normally. The other two weren't really close enough to hear their conversation, so there was no need to lower her voice. "What was in that book that Xelloss gave you last night?"

At the mention of the demon's name, the chimera stiffened slightly, but kept on walking, "It turned out to be the Water Dragon King's knowledge about dragons. It talked about all dragons but it was mostly about gold and black ones." He sighed and admitted, "I couldn't sleep last night so I ended up reading it."

"You too huh?" She looked away from him, "I couldn't sleep either." She put her hands behind her head in a relaxed pose, careful not to make Amelia and Gourry suspicious of their conversation – well, make Amelia suspicious anyway. "What do you think about that whole thing?"

Zelgadis stared straight ahead as he walked, "He's just trying to use us."

She scoffed at him, "Well yeah. I think that's fairly obvious. He practically said as much anyway." They were just now walking into the beginnings of a forest. She could hear a faint tinkling of water somewhere not far off. "What I mean is; what do you think about the… uh… the idea of … that." She finished lamely.

He considered it for a moment before telling her, "I really don't know what to think anymore."

She laughed, "Yeah Xelloss pretty much breaks all the stereotypes we've ever known about Mazoku."

He nodded in agreement, "I don't think I'll ever understand that guy."

Lina shrugged and smiled, "Would you really want to?"

He didn't even need to think about that one, "Not a chance."

They eventually found the river that Lina had heard. Hungry as always, Gourry was quick to volunteer to go fishing. Lina walked off deeper into the woods, saying she and Zelgadis would go find firewood. That only left Amelia behind, who decided she'd go off with Gourry to fish.

Amelia enchanted their fishing hooks, like she had learned from Lina long ago, "Those two have been acting weird since Xelloss-san left last night."

Gourry scratched his head, "You think so?" He thought about it for a moment, "Now that you mention it, Lina didn't eat as much at breakfast as usual. I hope they aren't getting sick or something."

She dropped her line in the water, "No, I'm sure it's nothing like that. Something's going on and they don't plan on telling us what it's about."

"You don't think the world's in trouble again or something do you?"

"I don't know… But I'm going to find out!" She pumped her fist in determination.

In the woods, Lina sauntered behind Zelgadis, picking up random pieces of wood she'd find on the ground before tossing it aside, deeming it not big enough or not dry enough. "Hey Zel?'

He turned around from his inspection of a fallen tree. "What is it?"

"I was just wondering," pick up another twig, look at it, toss it away, "That kiss last night… that wasn't your first was it?"

He'd really hoped they could not talk about the events of the night before anymore, but if that's what she thought, he needed to set the record straight. "Yes and no."

She made an impatient gesture with her hands as if to tell him, 'well explain'.

"I shared many kisses when I was still in my normal body." He looked a bit melancholy at the memories, "Back then, I was pursued by men and women alike." His expression turned to its usual anger whenever he discussed being transformed. "That all changed the day I turned into this."

He sighed, tired of always being reminded of what he was now. "So you could say it was my first kiss in this body." He added angrily, though without much force behind it, "I would have preferred it to have been with someone else."

Wanting to cheer him up, she smiled and pat him on the back. "Well I think you look good in this body Zel. Besides, it's the only way I've ever known you." He gave her a small smile back, appreciating her efforts.

She looked away, feeling a little sheepish when she admitted, "The only way I've gotten kisses before were indirect ones and kisses on the cheek." She had a thought, "Actually now that I think about it, those were all from Xelloss. Makes me wonder if he's had this idea of his all planned from the beginning."

He turned to look at her more closely, "From the beginning? You mean he gave you one of those kisses right after we met him?"

"Yeah. It was that first escapade with those macho men weirdos." She looked thoughtful, remembering back to that day. "It was just him and me in the ceiling, watching the leader grab the manuscript from his treasure vault. Xelloss said 'if you can fool your friends, then you can fool your enemies.' Then he kissed his finger then put it on my lips." She stared off a moment and mumbled something that sounded a lot like, 'that guy is so weird.'

"Do you think he's trying to fool us this time too?"

She shrugged, "Could be… but he already said he wasn't under orders and we know he doesn't lie."

Zelgadis put his chin in his hand, "But what if he was ordered to lie?"

Lina laughed, "Then he probably would lie." She shook her head, "We'll never really know what goes on in Xelloss' head."

He agreed, "The best thing to do would be to always be wary of him regardless of what he says."

She nodded, "Yeah that's true I guess. But as far as this whole…" She moved her hand in the air as if gesturing to something off in the distance, "proposal of his… I think he's telling the truth about it. Even if he was under orders and was ordered to lie that he was under orders, I just couldn't see him using sex as a means to lull us into a false sense of security." She blushed, "I think he asked us because he actually wants it."

He had to agree with her logic, Xelloss might occasionally be on the opposing side, but he didn't backstab anyone. If he intended to fight someone, he let them know about it. There was no reason to trick them in that particular way anyway. If he wanted them dead, he could just flick his wrist and it would be all over for them.

And a powerful being like that was interested in intimate relations with them? Zelgadis suppressed a shiver. It was terrifying and arousing at the same time.

Zelgadis shook his head, trying to clear his mind of Xelloss. Lina definitely helped that effort when she asked her next question.

"So, before… you said that everybody was attracted to you … I was wondering…" She looked away and bit her bottom lip, "What's that like? You know, to be considered attractive?"

He knew that for all her arrogance, and how cute she thought she was, Lina felt inferior because of how people made fun of her bust size, and how they weren't exactly beating down her door to ask her on a date.

He decided to return the favor from earlier and cheer her up, "You should know what that's like Lina." He smiled at her, "You know you're attractive." He chuckled, "And if it wasn't for the fact that most people are terrified of your amazing power, you'd have to beat suitors off with a stick."

She laughed, feeling better, "Thanks Zel." Now that it had been brought up, she really wanted to ask him something, "Is what Xelloss said last night true?" She blushed more, "Do you really… think about me that way?"

He couldn't explain why but he felt the need to squash all these insecurities that she was suddenly showing. The Lina he knew was brazen and arrogant and even though she could be a pain sometimes, he liked that Lina. He wanted that one back.

He fought down his own awkwardness and embarrassment and did his best to bring back his old personality, of a Zelgadis who was confident in his own body.

Walking well within the bounds of her personal space bubble, he reached down and tipped her chin up, lifting her face so her eyes would meet his.

"At this point, do you really need to ask that question Lina?" he moved his hand back further along her jaw to cup her face. "In fact… if you want to… I'd like to give you your first real kiss." He leaned down closer to her level, now well within kissing distance. "But I want the more confident Lina." His thumb lightly stroked her cheek, "So if you want it, you're going to have to take it from me." He smirked in a challenging manner.

Lina's eyes widened, this was a surprise. Definitely not how she envisioned her first kiss, but she wasn't going to let that stop her. The moment he said it, she'd already decided that she wanted it.

Her timid, uncertain look was quickly replaced by a look of cautious determination. Quickly closing the distance between them, she pressed her trembling lips up to his as she closed her eyes.

The kiss was shaky and nervous, but like her look, there was determination behind it. After a few moments of her inexperienced efforts, Zelgadis wanted more from her and took control of the kiss himself.

He was now holding her face between both his hands as he gently kissed and licked her lips. He wanted to get her to open them so he could deepen the kiss, but she unknowingly wouldn't give him the chance.

So he gently bit her bottom lip, getting the small gasp he expected, he quickly took the opportunity and plunged his tongue into her mouth. This was quickly followed by another gasp of surprise from Lina.

During the beginnings of the kiss he had been slowly moving them. Now that her back was pressed against a tree, he pressed his body against hers and slowly started moving one of his hands away from her face to trace the expanse of her neck while his tongue explored her mouth.

She moaned at the combined sensations and grasped the front of his cloak and tentatively used her tongue to stroke Zelgadis' own within in her mouth.

He was more than eager to encourage her experimentation, as he reciprocated the attentions and coaxed her tongue into his own mouth, his hand traveling down from her neck to rest at her waist.

Lina suddenly had the overwhelming urge to caress his face. She reach up to touch his cheek, forgetting that her own hands had full gloves on, unlike Zelgadis who's gloves left his fingers exposed. She gave a small growl in frustration as she ripped off her gloves, not breaking the kiss.

Zelgadiss chuckle over her irritation turned into a moan as her delicate fingers gently traced his face as they continued their kiss. His hand on her waist pulled her even tighter against him and he moved his tongue back into her mouth for one last taste before finally breaking the kiss for some much needed air.

He opened his eyes slightly to look at her as he touched their foreheads together and he continued to stroke her face with the hand that was still there. After a few moments he asked her, "So what do you think of your first kiss?"

She looked back at him through half opened, hazy eyes and mumbled, still in a daze, "'s great. Hard to believe it could get better 'n that."

He smiled softly at her, he could almost say he was endeared by how much a simple kiss affected her. "Oh it gets better than that. Trust me." He pulled away from her and she could only nod numbly. "We better get back before they start to wonder what happened to us."

He picked up her gloves that she had thrown to the ground and handed them back to her. She took them back and mechanically replaced them on her hands.

While she was doing that, Zelgadis walked back to the fallen tree he was inspecting earlier and took out his sword. In just a few quick swipes it was in several manageable pieces. He put away his sword and picked up an armload of freshly cut wood. Lina dazedly followed his example, picking up as many as she could carry, and they both walked back to where they'd last seen Gourry and Amelia.

Up in the trees Xelloss suddenly appeared on a tree limb. He had a look on his face that could only be described as a 'chesire smile'.

"My, my, my. Things are progressing much more quickly than I had anticipated." He gave a delighted chuckle, "I guess there's more pent up tension there than I realized."

He lightly hit his head with the extended fingers of his hand, "Never underestimate humans, 'those who live short but full lives.'"

He sat down on the branch he was standing on and pulled out the journal he had retrieved from Wolf Pack Island earlier. "Perhaps my old notes on humans will help me better predict these events. At the very least I think I need a bit of a refresher on certain things."

He flipped through his old journal, stopping when he came to a page titled with the words 'Seduction and Intercourse' scrawled across the top in his elegant handwriting. It had been probably about fifty or so years since he'd last indulged himself with a mortal. There were certain things most humans didn't like that demons did and he wanted to be sure not to scare them off by trying to jump right into something like, oh, say… some serious sado-masochism.

He chuckled at his own thoughts, _'Well, not at first anyway.'_ He grinned. _'Hopefully they'll be open to try it eventually._' He tried to prevent himself from drifting off in a daydream, _'I suppose that's jumping ahead a bit though. I still need to get them to agree to the basic arrangement first.'_

* * *

><p>Several miles away and many hours later, the group had settled into their campsite for the night. After dinner, Gourry told Lina he was worried she was getting sick since she hadn't been eating normally. She then finally told them about the spell on the necklace.<p>

"It's really pretty," Amelia praised as she studied the necklace Lina had taken off to let her see, "And useful too. Now if we could just get something like that for Gourry-san maybe we could get through meals without racking up a huge debt." She looked mildly upset, "One of these days Daddy will probably cut me off at the rate you guys make me spend money."

Lina took the necklace back from her. "I doubt something like this would work for Gourry. It's a magic restoration spell. It replaces energy that I burn when I use magic. Gourry burns energy by fighting and being so active." She put the necklace back on and grinned at the princess, "But hey, if you wanna ask Xelloss for a necklace for Gourry, be my guest." She laughed, "Though he'd probably take it the wrong way."

Amelia blushed but told her, "He could think whatever he wanted to if it meant I wouldn't have to go bankrupt feeding us." Mentioning Xelloss reminded her of her earlier decision, "By the way, are you guys ever going to tell us what's going on with him? There's not any big trouble getting ready to happen or something is there?"

Lina had hoped she'd drop the subject by now, but that was wishful thinking. "There's no need to worry about it. As far as I know, there's nobody from other worlds or gods or dragons or dark lords that are looking for a fight."

The reassurance didn't stop the princess, "So then what does he want?"

Lina fought the embarrassment-avoiding defensive instinct to yell at the girl to mind her own business. She just couldn't get Amelia to drop the subject and Zelgadis was out getting water from a stream so she couldn't even dump her onto him with her constant questioning.

She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed, "Look Amelia…" She was about to tell her 'it's not something I really want to talk about' but realized that just 'not wanting to talk' would keep Amelia bugging her with questions until she did want to talk. So instead, she went with, "What Xelloss talked to me and Zel about last night is a secret." She gave her one of the priest's iconic 'that's a secret' gestures, in hopes of reinforcing the idea that she wasn't going to tell her more about it.

Before Amelia had a chance to protest she added, "But I can promise you that it's nothing to do with anything that might turn into a fight with someone. There's no danger looming on the horizon and nobody's out to get us… well that I know of." She laughed, "But you know there's always some bandit gang that wants a piece of me."

She gave the princess a reassuring smile, "So please don't worry about it. If anything comes up that I need to tell you about, I will."

Amelia looked pretty down. She really wanted to know what was going on. The circumstances were all just so strange. She nodded mutely in agreement though, "Alright."

Zelgadis had just come back with the water for their tea and coffee. Since someone had to be up at all times when they were camping to keep guard against wild animals and bandits, it was a given that coffee would be needed. Even more so tonight since he and Lina were running on sleep deprivation mode as it was.

Gourry had fallen asleep after Lina had assured him that she wasn't sick and she was eating less because of a spell on her necklace. Zelgadis had volunteered for first watch, simply because he felt that once he fell asleep he probably wouldn't be able to get back up again until he was fully rested.

As soon as Lina's head hit the soft surface of her bedroll she was out cold, Amelia not far behind her, leaving Zelgadis alone with his thoughts.

Putting the water on the fire to boil he went through their foodstuffs to find the coffee. _'It's going to be a long night.'_ He leaned against a nearby tree and waited for the water to become hot enough for his coffee.

When Xelloss appeared in the middle of their campsite, he found an empty pot on the campfire that he assumed previously had water in it and everyone asleep, including the chimera still leaning against the tree.

He made a 'tsk'ing sound and shook his head. "Well this isn't very safe." He said to his companions that were all unconscious and couldn't hear him. "What would happen if some big bad Mazoku were to come here and find you all sleeping?"

Of course he got no answer.

He briefly had the urge to start banging on the empty pot, screaming something like 'We're being attacked!' He giggled at the idea but shrugged it off. The immediate reactions wouldn't be worth the lasting effect. It's hard to manipulate people when they won't talk to you.

Maybe some other mischief then? He had a pen and ink in his bag that would be perfect for drawing on faces. But no, that would get similar results to waking them up with screaming. Putting their hands in water? He wasn't a ten year old human boy.

Xelloss snapped his fingers, _'Got it! I'll meddle with their dreams.' _He congratulated himself. He'd get to have some fun and he could use this to his advantage. With that thought in mind, he vanished to the astral plane where he could use his power to interact with the humans' dreams.

He decided to start his fun with Amelia, simply because with her it was purely for entertainment value. He didn't need to put in as much effort with her as he did with Lina and Zelgadis.

When he entered her dream, he found that she was imagining something about some sort of ball. He would have thought that it was a memory-dream except for the fact that she was dancing with Pakota as he was now.

Amelia looked just as starry eyed as he thought she would probably look dancing with the real Pakota. Within her dream, all eyes were focused on the prince and princess as they waltz.

Xelloss grinned mischievously, _'Well this should be just as easy to sabotage as it would be in real life.'_ It was of course. When the pair danced close enough to him, he stuck out his staff and tripped up Amelia who fell flat on her face right at Pakota's feet.

As customary in the manner of dreams, everyone in the ballroom laughed at her and she looked up at Xelloss with big teary eyes. "H-H-H *hiccup* How could you b-b-be so meaaan!" He just grinned at her and gave her his customary 'that's a secret' look, and she picked herself off the ground and ran away crying.

Xelloss laughed and fed off the emotions her dream was causing and phased back into the normal space of the astral plane. "Well that was fun."

Next was Gourry. When the demon appeared in his dream, the man was eating like he normally would in any restaurant with his usual companions present.

Xelloss scratched his head,_ 'It's things like this that make me believe the only thing this human thinks about is eating and fighting.'_

He shrugged, "Oh well." With a gesture of his hand, all the dream food suddenly grew little arms and legs and personalities and began angrily yelling at Gourry for being so rude as to eat them without at least introducing himself first.

The face on dream-Gourry was quite comical but he quickly recovered. "Oh! I'm so sorry! My name's Gourry."

The food on the plate he was about to eat bowed in greeting, "I am steak, pleased to meet you."

The blonde smiled, "Well now that we've met can I eat you?"

The steak scoffed at him, "How rude! Would you really eat someone after you've gotten to know them?"

Gourry was incredibly confused, "But… if I can't eat you before we've been introduced, and I can't eat you after we've met… when can I eat you?"

The food on the table only yelled more things at him that he didn't understand, and Xelloss chuckled at his confusion as he left the swordsman's dream. "Well that wasn't nearly as fun as the princess's dream, but it was still entertaining."

Now the fun could really begin. He appeared in Lina's dream next.

As soon as he landed, he recognized his surroundings from earlier that day and spotted Lina and Zelgadis leaning against the same tree as before, kissing.

He grinned, _'My dear Lina-chan, you make this far too easy for me.'_

In the manner of dreams, it was a simple matter to make the tree she was pinned against vanish and allow him to take up its place against her back without her noticing.

She did however notice when an extra pair of hands were placed on her body. She broke the kiss with dream-Zelgadis and opened her eyes to see Xelloss. Before she could ask him what he was doing there, he started kissing up her neck from behind her, much like he did the night before, only this time, there was Zelgadis there too.

As the chimera was only a dream, he had no complaints about Xelloss' sudden presence, and began kissing Lina again with renewed vigor.

Two pairs of hands caressed and fondled her, while two mouths kissed and licked.

Since this was a dream of hers, Xelloss didn't have to worry about scaring her off or ruining his chances of doing this to her in reality. When she awoke, she would likely think this was just a regular dream of her own making, there would be no reason to believe otherwise.

With that thought in mind, he moved things much farther with dream-Lina. He continued to kiss and lick at her neck while his hands were busy along her front undoing her shirt, while the likeness of Zelgadis continued to kiss and touch her.

She gasped when he reached inside her open shirt to fondle one of her pert breasts. When she had gasped, she'd broken the kiss with Zelgadis who now saw her opened shirt and moved to take advantage of it, licking and kissing the breast that wasn't being fondled be Xelloss, moving his own hands to stroke up and down her thighs.

Lina let out a long moan and carefully stroked dream-Zel's hair. With his free hand Xelloss gently turned her head until she was facing him enough and kissed her. He ground his hips against her backside lightly as he deepened the kiss and continued fondling her breast.

After a few moments Xelloss reluctantly broke the kiss and moved away from her, forcing himself to remember that this was merely dream versions of Lina and Zelgadis. As fun as it was for a bit, it wasn't what he wanted. He wanted the real thing. He didn't really have an interest in becoming an incubus.

Dream-Zelgadis was more than happy to pick up his slack. The demon was pleased that Lina's dream was now headed in the direction he wanted it to go, but he wanted to be sure his presence was still influencing her subconscious, even if he wasn't there himself.

It was an easy task to leave a dream representation of himself there to take his place, allowing Lina's own mind to take control of the dream again, making it go where she wanted. By the time he finally forced himself to leave, his dream self and Zelgadis had completely freed her of her shoulder armor and shirt.

Back in the astral plane he grinned to himself, _'That should help put a few ideas in her head. Now then, last but not least…'_

When he appeared in Zelgadis' dream, it didn't take long for him to figure out what the chimera was dreaming about.

The priest walked past the rows of books and various devices in Rezo's labratory until he found Zelgadis. He was on the stone floor, near a magic circle and many different instruments and potions, clothed only in a simple blanket and staring in horror at a small mirror.

It seemed Xelloss had walked in on a particular moment when Zelgadis' anger had already been spent and all that was left was sadness. The youth's eyes were shining with unshed tears as he looked down at the image in the mirror.

Xelloss walked up to him slowly until he was in the chimera's line of sight, "You know, I really like the way you look." He smiled at him sincerely, "Not to mention all the benefits your body has."

Zelgadis jerked his head up quickly, and despite being a dream, the motion was enough to loosen an unshed tear, and it tumbled down his left cheek. He furiously rubbed it away and glared at Xelloss, his voice angry, "Xelloss! What the hell do you think you're doing in my dreams?"

The demon frowned, of course Zelgadis would be one of those few that knew when they were dreaming, and even aware enough to realize when their dreams had been invaded. Xelloss sighed, well at least his luck allowed him with a reasonable excuse.

"Wouldn't it be better to ask, why are you asleep? From what I could gather when I visited your campsite, you should be on guard." He smiled at him.

Zelgadis growled and held the blanket tighter. "Couldn't you just wake me up like a normal person?"

Xelloss just smiled at him cheerily, "Do I ever do anything 'like a normal person?'"

Instead of answering him, Zelgadis forced himself to wake up and Xelloss was promptly kicked from his dream and back into the astral plane. _'That could have gone better.' _Of course for Xelloss, 'better' would have been Zelgadis never realizing he was dreaming so that the demon could manipulate his dreams.

By the time Xelloss had returned to the physical realm, Zelgadis was already up and had put more water in the pot that had previously still sat empty on the campfire. He wasn't too happy with Xelloss invading his dreams but he was still too tired to pick a fight with him, so he merely glared at him.

Xelloss just smiled at him, ignoring the chimera's warning look when he sat next to him. "Why don't you go back to sleep? I promise I won't peek in your dreams again." '_For tonight at least_,' he added to himself silently. "I'm going to be here anyway and you know I don't sleep, so I'll keep watch."

Zelgadis looked longingly at his bedroll, he was much too tired to argue or accuse him of anything.

Before he went back to sleep he needed to be sure of something. Zelgadis glared threateningly at Xelloss and commanded, "You will never tell anyone about what you saw in my dream."

Xelloss smiled too happily for the chimera's liking. "A secret just between the two of us?" He winked at Zelgadis, "Why of course I'll keep it secret," he said, putting his finger up to his lips, in a variation of his usual 'that's a secret' gesture, he kissed the finger while still winking at Zelgadis. "A secret just between us," he reiterated, in a coy manner.

Zelgadis blushed and stood up, "You know I didn't mean it like that." He really didn't want to argue. Walking over to his bedroll, he lay down on it and fell asleep almost instantly.

Xelloss smiled after him. Just like Lina, Zelgadis was so much fun to antagonize.

He took the pot off the fire so the water wouldn't burn away again and summoned a cup of tea for himself. His method was just better.

He took a sip and seriously considered if he should go back into Lina's dream to watch the show. He grinned wickedly when, as if on cue, Lina gave a moan in her sleep and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like 'Don't stop.'

* * *

><p>AN

I got the idea of Gourry's talking food from Lewis Caroll's 'Through the Looking Glass'. If you haven't read those original Alice in Wonderland stories you should. They're weird O_o

Please review! :D Xelloss will summon some tea for you if you do! :D


	3. Conspiracy

A/N

Disclaimer: Still don't own Slayers. If I did, there would have been an omake episode featuring Phibrizzo as a mischievous little brother character who pesters Lina. Lol

* * *

><p>When he reentered Lina's dreams, Xelloss was disappointed to find that the dream he had left her with had already ended and a new one had taken its place. The disappointment turned immediately into amusement however, when he discovered what it was that had caused her to moan and talk in her sleep.<p>

In this new dream, Lina was receiving what appeared to be a really good massage from Hellmaster Phibrizzo and Gaav the Demon Dragon King.

The incredibly tall demon Gaav was currently kneeling at dream-Lina's propped up feet, with one of the tiny appendages in his massive hands, rubbing it. He had a magic-infused iron collar around his neck with a chain attaching it to the floor. Xelloss' smile was huge. He would have happily paid all the gold in his coffers to have been able to see this image in real life- and would have stolen more gold to pay if he could have been the one to imprison Gaav in such a manner.

Phibrizzo was rubbing Lina's back, just like he did in real life when he'd tricked her. He also had a collar just like Gaav's. Looking around the very large, luxurious room, Xelloss saw various other highly ranked and powerful Mazoku that the sorceress had met in her travels in the waking realm. All of them had similar collars and were doing menial tasks.

Before he even had a chance to wonder if a dream version of himself were here among the enslaved demons, the door to the room opened and in walked dream-Xelloss carrying a tea tray. He was dressed in sleek black clothes with a neatly tucked in white cravat, but with no collar. In short, he was dressed like a butler.

If Xelloss had Zelgadis' personality, he would have said something along the lines of 'What the hell is this crap?' As it was, his left eyebrow just twitched in irritation as he watched his dream self submissively serve her tea. 'W_ell, at least she didn't dream of me doing her laundry.' _He looked over toward Mazenda who was sorting through a heap of Lina's dirty traveling clothes with a disturbed look on her face.

'_I guess something like this shouldn't surprise me that much.' _He sighed_, 'I suppose if I take anything away from this, it's that she trusts me enough to not put a collar on me in her dream of Mazoku enslavement._' He looked back toward his dream self and smirked, '_Though I would much prefer to be her sex slave than her butler._' His smirk turned lecherous, '_If that were the case, I think I might actually enjoy a chained collar.'_

Xelloss was once again reminded of his disappointment at missing the earlier dream play out. Deciding he may as well get back, he left and after a few moments, reappeared at his place by the fire in the campsite.

Several hours later, Lina was the first to wake when the sun began to rise. This was mostly due to the fact that the place she chose to sleep was the only place in their campsite that ended up not being shaded from the morning sun.

She grumbled in annoyance, rubbed her eyes and groggily wondered why she'd never been woken during the night to take her turn guarding camp. The answer to that question was apparent when she sat up and saw Xelloss smiling happily at her by the campfire.

"Good morning, Lina-san." He smirked at her, "Slept well I trust?"

The attempt to draw out an embarrassed reaction went completely unnoticed as Lina yawned and greeted him like normal. The demon frowned and lightly cursed his luck. It appeared that she didn't remember any of her dreams from that night, especially not the one he influenced.

After rolling up her bedding, Lina came over to sit next to him at the fire and started preparing enough coffee for everyone.

"I take it you came back sometime last night and stood guard so we could sleep?" She asked as she got out the cups from their foodstuffs bag.

"I thought I may as well." He grinned, "I figured that I couldn't just let you all be killed in your beds. What with your sentry asleep on the job."

Lina sighed and shook her head, "Did Gourry fall asleep again?"

Xelloss laughed lightly, "No, actually it was Zelgadis-san who was asleep at his post."

"Zel? That's not like him." She thought back to the day before, "Then again he said he didn't really sleep the night before. He must've been pretty tired."

"Oh? What about you?" Xelloss gave her an all-knowing grin, "You didn't sleep much the night before either did you?"

She blushed and scowled at him at the same time, "I just knew you had to be lurking around the inn somewhere you jerk."

Deciding not to give him the benefit of her emotions for his breakfast she stood up, grabbed her pack and headed off to the stream. "I'm going to get cleaned up." She stopped to turn around and glare at him with her finger pointed accusingly. "Don't you dare peek on me or so help me L-sama, I will make you regret it."

She didn't even give him a chance to answer before turning around and walking off.

Xelloss put his chin in his palm and sighed as he poked the fire with a stick. "Today isn't starting out as well as yesterday." He glanced over to the still sleeping travelers, "I'll just have to change that."

Gourry was close enough to him that he could reach his face with his poking stick. So from where he sat the demon gently poked the swordsman's face trying to wake him up.

Xelloss had to suppress a laugh as the blonde turned his head at just the right moment and the stick went up his nose. It was enough to wake him up but before Gourry opened his eyes Xelloss had already incinerated the stick with magic and turned his head back toward the fire so as to appear completely innocent.

Gourry sneezed and sat up and rubbed his nose, mumbling something about bugs trying to lay eggs in his brain. Turning as if just now noticing the blonde was awake, Xelloss greeted him, "Good Morning."

"Oh, hey Xelloss. I'm surprised to see you back again so soon." Gourry yawned and looked around at the still sleeping Amelia and Zelgadis. "Where's Lina?"

Xelloss merely smiled at him cheerily and waved off the question. "She'll be back soon enough. Best to get ready for the day Gourry-san. I believe you all have a lot of traveling to get done today right?"

It was far too simple to trick Gourry under normal circumstances, but when he had just woken up and was still groggy with sleep it was ridiculously easy.

Gourry stood up and stretched, "Guess I'll go get cleaned up then." He grabbed his pack and gave Xelloss a friendly wave as he walked toward where he knew the stream was.

The demon smiled happily to himself. It took less than a minute after Gourry had left his sight that Lina's scream could be heard echoing through the woods.

Zelgadis and Amelia shot out of their sleeping rolls and looked around in a panic as Xelloss just laughed. Gourry came running back to the campsite, accompanied by various objects being thrown at him from the direction he had run from. Most of the objects were rocks, really heavy rocks and most of them seemed to hit their mark despite Lina no longer being able to see Gourry as she was still hidden in the brush.

Xelloss laughed lightly as he enjoyed his 'breakfast'. This was a much better way to start the day. Of course he was the only one with that opinion though.

* * *

><p>They traveled throughout the day and at some point the mood among the group had returned to normal. Most of the tension was caused by Lina anyhow, but she finally let up a little when Xelloss had reminded her that he needed to eat breakfast too.<p>

She knew it was just his nature, and she couldn't really fault him for his need to eat something other than conventional food. So after they came to an agreement that Xelloss' meals would no longer be brought about by tricking people into seeing Lina naked, the trip was much more pleasant.

The next few days on their journey were rather uneventful as far as their traveling went. They were attacked by two bandit gangs who were wiped out for their efforts, Amelia fell into a trap pit, Gourry broke another of his replacement swords and Zelgadis fell through a rickety bridge as they crossed a river. Luckily, the water was only as deep as his shoulders but sopping wet clothes was a pain he could have done without.

Xelloss didn't prompt anymore events between Lina, Zelgadis and himself. He seemed to be patiently biding his time. Lina was almost sure she could actually see him plotting. She could see from her peripheral vision that he would get a dark little smirk on his face from time to time. She wasn't quite sure if she should be worried or not.

When they finally arrived in Seyruun, Lina and Amelia wasted no time in getting to the palace baths.

Staying in the Seyruun palace was always a treat. Because Amelia was the princess and Lina was her friend, they always got the spa treatment whenever they were there. This time was even better than usual as Amelia insisted they needed to look their best for the festivities in Taforashia in a week.

As the girls were being pampered, Gourry and Zelgadis were meeting with Prince Philionel's tailor. Xelloss had declined the offer of clothing, saying he already had an outfit for this type of occasion. Zelgadis had given him a skeptical look, but the demon just smiled at him and left, saying he had things to do and that he would catch up with them again later.

* * *

><p>"Oh look at this material Lina-san! Isn't it the prettiest fabric you've ever seen! You should have your dress made of this!"<p>

Lina and Amelia were in the princess' tailor's workshop and she was holding up a fabric bolt of delicate, rosy pink material.

The red head's eye twitched slightly, "Light pink has never really been my favorite to wear." Every time Lina looked at a pink dress, she was inevitably reminded of that 'festival costume' and the horrible embarrassment of that whole mess of singing to cast what they had thought would be a holy spell.

Amelia pouted but put back the fabric and continued to look amongst the piles of fabric.

The dressmaker waited patiently on them as they looked through his materials. Amelia gasped in delight as she ran her fingers over a bolt of silky light blue fabric she had just found. "Oh look at this Lina-san! Do you think this color would look good on me?"

Lina stopped her perusing to look at the fabric Amelia now showed her and smiled cheerfully. "I think that color was made for you Amelia. Are you going to get a dress made too?"

The princess thought for a moment as she continued to run her fingers over the fabric, "Well I was just going to wear one of my already made ball gowns since we didn't have that much time before the events." She blushed lightly, "But I really would like to wear something extra special for the occasion."

Lina grinned mischievously, "That wouldn't be because of a certain prince now living in a rather fine looking young man's body would it?"

Amelia's blush darkened and she waved her free hand that wasn't holding the bolt of fabric in her arms at Lina. "N-no! Nothing like that! I-I just want to look my best to represent Seyruun!" At Lina's continued smirk she stated a little louder than she intended. "That's all!"

Lina continued to smirk but humored the princess, "Fine fine. So are you going to have it made?"

Amelia turned to the patient tailor, "Bardroy-san, would it be possible to make ball gowns for both Lina-san and I before we leave in two days?"

The tailor bowed happily at his princess, "It would be no problem at all. I have two apprentices and three assistants that I can call upon. We'll have both of your dresses done in no time at all your highness." He rose from his slight bow, "I can have sketches of dresses done and sent for your approval before dinner so the jeweler and cobbler can have matching accessories and shoes done in time too."

Amelia seemed quite pleased as she put her chosen bolt of fabric down on the edge of his work table for him to use later. "That would be great! Thank you." She turned back to Lina, "Now we just need to find your fabric."

Lina nodded and turned back to the huge pile of fabrics. "There's so many here." She scratched her head, "It would be easier to choose if I didn't have so many options."

The tailor caught her attention. "If I may, miss, I actually have a fabric in mind that I think would look quite fetching on you, if you would allow me to show you." He smiled politely at her and she nodded her acquiescence, curious to what fabric he might have in mind.

He walked briskly past her to a pile of fabrics in the corner. The problem Amelia and Lina had looking through the fabrics before was that none of them seem to be in any particular order. Colors and materials seemed to be haphazardly piled in an organization method that only the tailor himself understood. This sort of categorizing seemed to be a common occurrence amongst artisans.

From the pile, the tailor pulled a bolt of fabric that Lina hadn't seen earlier. It was blood red. The kind of blood that came from a mortal wound; dark and crimson. The silky material added a shine to it that added to the illusion of blood.

Suddenly, the images of Xelloss' plotting smirks and memories of his demonic eyes flashed in her mind and her face broke into a plotting grin of her own that was interpreted by the tailor and Amelia at simply being happiness at finding a material she liked.

'_If Xelloss insists on playing this game with me and Zelgadis, I suppose we should start being competitive participants too. Turnabout is fair play after all__.'_

Outwardly she merely nodded her head in approval. "Yes I like that fabric. I think I'd like some dark evening gloves to go with it."

Bardroy the tailor nodded happily, "Yes miss, I was thinking the same thing myself." He moved past her to put the bolt next to Amelia's chosen fabric on his workbench.

Amelia clapped her hands excitedly, "Such a great choice Lina-san! The color will go so well with your hair and eyes!" That hadn't been what Lina was thinking of when she'd chosen the color but she nodded her head in agreement.

The princess started walking from the workshop, "Let's leave Bardroy-san to work. It's 3 o'clock already. He won't have much time before dinner is ready."

Lina didn't move to leave, "Actually I'll catch up with you here in a bit Amelia. I have a few ideas about this dress that I'd like to talk to him about.

Amelia only smiled happily, excited that Lina was finally getting into the idea of the ball. "Of course. I'll see you later then." She smiled and waved as she ran off, leaving Lina with the dressmaker.

* * *

><p>When she came down to the dining hall for dinner, Lina was pleasantly surprised to find Sylphiel amongst her friends. It was explained that the priestess was recently instated as a part of Prince Philionel's personal guard, with the premise that Sylphiel was in charge of healing if his entourage was injured during political travels.<p>

Sylphiel was happy to announce that she would be traveling with them and Prince Phil and be allowed to attend the ball. Her dress had already been made a few days beforehand and she was excited to show it to Amelia and Lina after dinner.

It didn't take her long before she made doe eyes at Gourry and asked if he'd save a dance for her. His happily innocent answer of 'of course' was met with her content little sigh and a blush as she put her hands on her face and looked away bashfully.

Lina's eyebrow twitched at the sickeningly sweet display, but was surprised that there was only a small twinge of jealousy in her chest. Her eyebrow quirked in realization that her confused feelings regarding Gourry were even more confused thanks to the recent events involving Xelloss and Zelgadis and unspoken promises made by the demon.

With a small frown she watched the interactions between Gourry and Sylphiel as she ate and knew that if she couldn't figure out her emotions regarding the swordsman soon, she risked losing him to the priestess.

Upon this discovery, she realized she wasn't as upset as she should be. The last few days seemed to have helped her put some perspective on her feelings for the blonde. She was still uncertain, but she was starting to better understand her own emotions.

Zelgadis sipped his dinner wine and watched Lina's expressions from the corner of his eye with interest. He could easily tell the sort of thoughts that were flitting through her mind and he came to wonder if it was because he had always known her so well, or if it was because of the closeness to her that was recently brought about.

He decided he could reflect on those ideas later. There was no way he could focus on any sort of deep and complicated emotional questions while there were so many people around talking excitedly right next to him.

After dinner, the group had decided to go out to the city to get some of Seyruun's famous ice cream for dessert. As they were walking to Amelia's favorite ice cream shop they came across Xelloss standing in the street on their way, apparently waiting for them.

"Ah! What a fine coincidence meeting you here!" He smiled in feigned surprise at them.

Lina scowled, "Cut the crap Xelloss. How long were you spying on us before we headed out?" Her eyebrow twitched in irritation, if he'd been watching her during the afternoon with the tailor then her well laid plan would be for nothing.

Luckily that wasn't the case. He pouted, "You should play along with me more often Lina-san. It's more fun that way." She merely smirked at him in a secretive way that even he didn't know the reason for. Brushing it off, he actually answered her, "I've been observing you since dinner."

He smiled smugly at her, allowing her to try to grasp his intentions as he walked over to where Sylphiel stood beside Gourry. "Greetings Sylphiel-san, forgive me, but I believe we have only met quite briefly before." He placed his right hand on his chest and bowed slightly, "I apologize, but I cannot recall if I've introduced myself to you yet, allow me to do so now. My name is Xelloss. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

She responded to his bow with a slight, and uncertain curtsy, "It's a pleasure," she returned the greeting. She had been told of Xelloss, had seen him in battle from afar and knew that he was a Mazoku. He seemed friendly enough but the fact that she knew what he was and how powerful he was really unnerved her and put her on edge.

Of course Xelloss enjoyed her fear, especially since he had given no direct reason for her to fear him. He could only imagine how powerful her fear of him would be if he actually threatened her. It was best not to think about it though. Such a thing would only ruin his plans concerning her two friends.

Instead, he opened his eyes slightly to look at her. The sight of the inhuman, lavender irises were enough to get the result he was looking for. She instinctually backed up away from him and consequently into Gourry's chest, who was standing behind her.

He put a hand on her shoulder in reaction, not understanding what happened to make her fearful. "What's wrong Sylphiel?"

At the question and touch she jumped slightly and moved away from Gourry, blushing and looking away embarrassed. "N-nothing." She coughed a little trying to clear her throat. Being the honest person she was, she thought she should answer him anyway. "I-it's just… I've never met a Mazoku before." She looked away sheepishly, feeling foolish that she seemed to be the only one among them that feared the demon priest.

Xellos just smiled charmingly, his eyes closed again, "I assure you, Sylphiel-san, I mean you no harm. Unlike others of my kind, I don't cause death and destruction unless I have orders or reason to." He continued to smile at her, as if his answer should make her feel better, though knowing full well that it unnerved her even more.

Gourry smiled and vouched for the demon, "Yeah that's right. Xellos isn't all that bad Sylphiel. As far as Mazoku go, he's got the best table manners I've ever seen." He joked. "He prefers to just anger people like Lina for his supper rather than kill to cause fear."

The aforementioned demon was slightly taken aback that the blonde was that understanding of his nature and behavior. The swordsman always seem to have some surprising insight when they least expected it.

Before the priest could add anything to the conversation, Lina interrupted, "No kidding. I think Zel and I are his favorite foods or something." She said this sarcastically and with a bit of annoyance to her voice but her eyes held the look of an inner meaning that Xelloss and Zelgadis both picked up on without anyone else being the wiser.

The chimera made a 'hmph' sound and looked away not commenting, but Xelloss saw the challenge in her eyes. _'So that's how it is now, is it?' _He smiled at her, it flashed lecherously for only a moment before turning into his usual cheerful grin. "That's rather presumptuous of you isn't it Lina-san?"

Her face faltered for a moment and Zelgadis' interest in the conversation was renewed as he quickly looked between the two of them, gauging the situation. Without thinking, he jumped into the conversation that held a second meaning only to the three of them. "Oh? If that's not the case, then why do you insist upon causing Lina and I constant anger and irritation?"

This was becoming more fun by the minute. "I admit that the emotions of you two are high on my list of choices for meals, but I have yet to classify you as my 'favorite.'" He grinned at them. "Perhaps if I were to sample some _other_ emotions from you both I might place you higher on that list." He shrugged lightly, "Perhaps we'll see someday."

Lina and Zelgadis both felt mildly insulted in ways that they both couldn't quite understand. Since Gourry and the others were there, they couldn't discuss the topic more clearly with Xelloss.

Zelgadis decided this game of double meaning was getting too risky with the others present. "Tsk. Whatever. Who cares what your favorite meals are anyway." He started walking again toward the ice cream parlor, mumbling under his breath for the benefit of the others to hear him, "Filthy Mazoku."

Lina gave one last glance at Xelloss, warning him with her eyes that this little battle of wills was not yet over, before she shrugged uncaringly and started walking again herself.

As the group started on their trek again, Amelia stayed behind slightly, eying the backs of her three companions. There was definitely something going on with the three of them that they purposefully kept above the heads of the everyone else. She idly wondered if it had to do with that deal that Xelloss had proposed to them that Lina and Zelgadis wouldn't talk about.

Sighing, she gave up on thinking about it. Trying to figure it out on her own wouldn't work. If she wanted to know what was going on, she'd have to be patient and wait until what was happening came out into the open- if it ever did.

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><p>Much later that evening found Lina and Zelgadis alone in the palace game room, a half played chess game between them. Neither had felt ready to sleep and so they had decided to keep themselves occupied, chatting idly, skirting around the issues that they both wanted to talk about and at the same time avoid.<p>

Lina sighed as she picked up one of her black bishops and stared at it, finally feeling the need to talk about the dark priest.

"He's going to drive us mad you know."

Zelgadis sighed himself, putting his forehead in hand. "I wouldn't be surprised if that was a part of his plans."

She smiled wickedly at him, catching his attention as she waved the black bishop in her hand in front of him. "Suppose we were to return the favor?"

His brow creased questioningly, "What do you mean by that?"

"I've been thinking about this..." Her grin spread, "Suppose we give him a taste of his own medicine?"

Zelgadis' eyebrow raised, "What? You mean seduce him?"

Lina put the bishop on the chess board between them, game already forgotten. "Exactly. Think about it. There's two of us and only one of him. Even with his inhuman patience, surely he'll snap eventually."

The chimera looked at her like she'd grown two heads. "That would be like playing with fire you know. Besides, what would the reason for that be?"

She shrugged, "Does there really have to be a reason besides giving him a taste of his own medicine."

He looked into her face again, realization hitting him. "You've already made you're decision to his proposal haven't you?"

Surprisingly she didn't blush as she looked right into his eyes and answered bluntly. "I suppose so." Her wicked grin returned as she continued to look at him. "But I see no harm in being in control of this situation, even if that control is an illusion he's allowing."

Zelgadis picked up the black bishop and frowned at it. "What makes you think I've made a decision about this?"

She scoffed at him and with a brief feeling of déjà vu she told him, "This is Xelloss. If he's got it in his head that he wants to bed us both, do you honestly think we really have a choice in the matter?" He looked at her darkly, realizing the truth to her words. "The offer of giving us a choice is an illusion because he wants us to want it." She pointed her finger, emphasizing her point. "You know he knows us way too well. He could easily manipulate us however he wanted without even really trying. That stupid trap with that damn detective was proof enough of that."

He scoffed, "He's proven he can manipulate you maybe, but I've never seen any proof of what you say concerning me."

She scowled at him but laughed instead. "You're joking. He's manipulated you plenty of times before. Case in point; retrieving Claire Bible manuscripts for him so he didn't have to get it himself." She ticked off her raised finger before adding another finger, "Getting every single one of us to fight Gaav," another finger, "Valgaav," yet another finger, "Darkstar" another, "getting a rise out of you for his meals."

"Alright, alright. I get it." He crossed his arms. "But adding all of those things up and looking at the overall picture, he seems to know how to manipulate you better than me. Who's to say that he could really succeed in his plans with me?"

She rolled her eyes, "Just because he hasn't tormented you in a trap involving a crazy inspector doesn't mean he doesn't know how to get you to do what he wants. It's highly likely he simply hasn't had a reason to use his knowledge of you until now." Crossing her arms she glared at him, trying to get her point across. "Which I think is the case, and if I'm right, he'll use his knowledge to seduce you into bed as well as me. If that's true, wouldn't it be better to turn the tables on him before he has the chance?"

Zelgadis scowled, she had a very valid point. On one hand, he could refuse the 'offer' Xelloss made and possibly be trapped in his web anyway or take him up on the offer, beating him to the punch and keeping his dignity and illusion of choice intact.

Lina's face turned darker as she added, "Even if you were successful in refusing, what reason do we have to believe that he wouldn't resort to force if he wanted to?" She frowned, "I'd like to think that Xelloss has some sort of morals, but we can't forget he is a Mazoku."

Her brow creased, obviously bothered by this thought of hers, "To be quite honest it would be better for him if he were to force himself on us. He has the power; it would be easy for him. He'd get his pleasure and all the fear and anger he could possibly want." She bit her lip briefly before adding, "But I think he'd prefer us to want it so he can benefit continuously from it."

She sighed, wanting to turn away from this dark idea, "I could be wrong though. Maybe he would let us walk away if we wanted to. And maybe he does have morals even though he's a Mazoku. But I'd rather us both be prepared and consider the possibilities."

Zelgadis was deep in thought but nodded solemnly in agreement, "Surprisingly, I hadn't thought of those darker possibilities yet. They are worrisome."

Her mischievous smile returned again, "With all those things to consider, is giving him what he wants really that bad? He set it up so we can all have what we want. Treasure, information, sex." He was surprised to find that she hadn't blushed when she said the last word. Her natural need to be in control of every situation she was placed in seemed to be helping her to quickly develop into a much more mature Lina with this whole ordeal.

There was one thing that seemed to be missing from her list. "What about love? I would think that would be something someone like you would require from an intimate relationship."

This did make her blush, but she answered head on anyway, shrugging, "I've always thought so too. But do you really think I'm the kind to settle down and raise a family anyway?"

He wasn't buying her attempt at redirecting his question. "No, but that's not what I asked."

She looked away this time. "I… really don't know what to think about that. I suppose that it's something to think about when it comes up."

He crossed his arms, "You know it's probably not possible for Xelloss to love anyone in return."

She turned to face him scowling, "I seem to recall there was another person involved in this little equation." She immediately shut her mouth and blushed lightly at what she'd said.

His eyes widened, almost not believing what he'd heard. Heart pounding in his chest, he had to ask, "Are… are you saying you think this whole ordeal could cause you to fall in love with me?"

Her face was beat red but she did her best to answer him truthfully, "It's very possible. I mean- I don't know- but I suppose if my current affection and interest in you is anything to go on…" she trailed off, unable to finish her thoughts but knowing he'd understand what she was trying to say.

He could only shake his head disbelievingly, thoughts too erratic to organize. She looked at him, misinterpreting his silence, assuming his thoughts were back to his age old worries. She frowned at him, "If you're currently bashing yourself, thinking I couldn't love you because of your body, stop it. That thought is nothing but bullshit. I've told you before I don't care what you look like."

She looked at him more deeply, making sure he knew that she truly meant what she was about to say, "Not only do I think that the way you look is uniquely you but I prefer it to the appearances of 'normal' people." She smiled fondly at him, "I like the way you look because it's who you are."

Zelgadis was deeply touched. His heart beat almost violently, his thoughts still disorganized as he moved on mere impulse to reach over the small chess table between them and touched her cheek with his free hand to pull her close enough to kiss her.

Her eyes closed and her heart fluttered as she was given her second kiss. She decided she could definitely get used to Zelgadis' kissing. It was tender and yet full of a need that was a mixture of several emotions. She understood now that the need to be loved was among the emotions she felt when he kissed her. The need to be loved unconditionally. She found herself seriously hoping that she would be able to fulfill that need in time.

As their kiss broke and they rested their foreheads against each other, Zelgadis continued to gently stroke her cheek.

He leaned back into his seat, raising the black bishop that he still had in his hand up for both of them to look at and chuckled. "I guess we have that damn Mazoku to thank for bringing about these kinds of moments between us." He looked at her and a wicked smirk mirroring her earlier one appeared on his face. "I suppose we should show our appreciation then."

Lina's wicked smile returned to her, joining his hand holding the black bishop, "There's no reason not to." She agreed.

Zelgadis leaned back in toward her conspiratorially, "So what's this plan of yours?"

The sorceress' grin darkened, "Well…"

Down in Seyruun, Xelloss sat at a bar, happily sipping his drink nonchalantly as a bar brawl, that he might have had a hand in starting using his demonic powers, unfolded around him. He was briefly distracted from his meal of anger, bloodlust and fear as he reached up to rub at his ears, '_That's odd, my ears burn__.'_

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><p>AN: The games begin!<p>

Just to be clear, I would never have Xelloss rape either of him. Lina doesn't really think that he would either, she's just being overly cautious.

Oddly enough, I think the only thing I really had in mind was something like a 3 chapter smutfest when I started writing this. This plot thing is happening on its own LOL but now I've got ideas in my head and I hope you readers will be pleased with the continuation of the story :D

Please review! I promise to make Xelloss do many sexy things for you if you do! LOL


	4. We're All Mad Here

Disclaimer: I don't own Slayers, only my perversions

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><p>The next day was the last full day the group spent in Seyruun before they would leave the following morning to travel to Taforashia. Since they were limited on time, they would be taking carriages to the city as that method of travel would only take three days, rather than the five it would take on foot.<p>

The late morning found Lina spending most of her time with Amelia and Sylphiel as the girls met with the shoemaker, jeweler and the dress maker again for some adjustments on the nearly completed dresses.

The three hadn't spent much time with the cobbler as Sylphiel already had her shoes for her dress and Amelia and Lina had picked from the selection that was already available instead of having them specially made. However, a significant amount of time was spent at the jewelers. It was challenging to get Lina's treasure glazed eyes to stop appraising the jewelry for how much it was worth long enough to pick something that she actually liked enough to wear rather than sell.

Amelia's sense of fashion had her choosing several strands of pearl necklaces and matching bracelets and large earrings whereas Sylphiel's more mature style of 'less is more' had her picking a simple necklace and a pair of earrings.

While the other girls were busy looking through the jewelry, Lina and the middle-aged jeweler had spoken in private. The sorceress hadn't thought of accessories yet, so she showed the woman the sketch of the gown she was going to be wearing and asked her for her opinion.

Lina had explained the effect she was going for with her ballroom ensemble. Looking at the sketch of the blood red dress, the insightful older woman raised an eyebrow in question. To which Lina only told her that the man she was trying to attract was a fellow adventurer who was interested in bloodlust a little more than most. The jeweler just shrugged, chalking it up to all adventurers being some degree of crazy, the redhead standing before her definitely included, and discussed Lina's choice of jewelry with her.

After showing the woman the necklace Xelloss had given her, the two of them had agreed that it would be best if Lina wore it and to choose accessories that matched. Not only would prominently wearing the gift he gave her please him but the blue gem was so small and was just the right amount of color that it wouldn't clash with the red of the dress, yet it would easily stand out against it.

So an hour later the girls left the jeweler. Amelia with more pearls than she could carry without a small satchel, Sylphiel with a white gold necklace with a dove pendant with a dark green gem and matching earrings, and Lina with only a pair of chandelier earrings and a simple silver bracelet chain.

Zelgadis' day was much more free than Lina's, leaving him to work on their plans in a more active manner.

They hadn't seen Xelloss since the ice cream parlor the night before and with him, there was no telling when he would be back. On a hunch, the chimera went to the palace library alone to spend his afternoon, thinking that if the demon was watching him, he would show himself eventually.

His hunch turned out to be correct and after only a half an hour reading alone in the library the Mazoku showed up to bother him.

Xelloss had phased onto the mortal plane, on the edge of the table right in front of where Zelgadis sat, effectively making it so the Mazoku was sitting on the edge with a leg on either side of the chimera's lap. "What might you be reading up on this time?"

There was no lack of effort on Zelgadis' part to scoot his chair back immediately as soon as he discovered Xelloss in front of him and shot him a dirty look. It would be easy for the chimera to continue his usual reactionary behavior for a while. At this phase of their plans the name of the game was 'playing hard to get'.

The demon priest pouted cutely, "Still so jumpy Zelgadis-san? I had hoped you might be interested now, what with you going to the library all alone to try and coax me into visiting you."

Zelgadis scoffed, trying to hide the fact that it was true by saying, "Look who it is being presumptuous today. Had it occurred to you that I might be going to the library alone to- oh I don't know - read?"

Xelloss eased off the edge of the table, leaving his staff on top of it, he leaned in close to Zelgadis as the chimera still sat in his chair and purred in a low voice, "It's been about a week now and you haven't told me no yet."

The chimera pushed his way past him as he stood up from his chair and walked a few steps away, "I haven't said yes yet either."

Xelloss just shrugged at him happily, "Is there any reason for me to believe that you would ever outright tell me yes?"

The chimera crossed his arms and frowned, Xelloss _did_ know him too well, "When I'm ready to, I'll let you know for sure one way or the other. Is that fair?"

The trickster made a show of sighing and shrugged in feigned exasperation, "I suppose."

Zelgadis continued to cross his arms, "Anyway, how can you just phase in here? Doesn't the white magic circle around Seyruun bother you at all?"

"Oh that?" Xelloss smirked at him, obviously feeling egotistical, "For all their effort, the white magic barriers in Seyruun are no match for a Mazoku of my caliber. As it stands, the only effect it has on me is an annoying buzzing sound in my ears."

Zelgadis gave him a smirk that was slightly mischievous but mostly annoyed, "That's ironic. You have that exact same effect on me."

"Oh?" Xelloss eyes opened fractionally to look into Zelgadis', "Is that so?" He leaned in, well within the chimera's personal space bubble, tilting the chimera's jaw up with his thumb and forefinger, "Surely that's not the _only_ effect I have on you?"

Zelgadis wasn't doing very well at this little game so far. Xelloss had about a thousand years more experience than he did in the art of seduction, but that didn't stop the youth from being mad about losing. He figured if he couldn't turn the tables right now, the least he could do was stall the beast priest from winning.

With that thought in mind, Zelgadis brushed off Xelloss' hand and turned away but glared at him from the corner of his eye. "Of course not. You also make me want to punch you in the face."

Xelloss didn't bat an eyelash as he continued to roll with his current momentum, not backing away from Zelgadis. "You shouldn't say such a thing to a Mazoku who you know wants to sleep with you." He winked at him flirtatiously, "Not unless you plan to follow through with that threat, of course." His smile turned lecherous, "I'm sure you could guess, but those of my kind are just as much masochists as we are sadists."

Zelgadis' eyes went wide and he backed up away from Xelloss, slightly frazzled. Now he really did want to punch him, but he couldn't be sure, even in his own mind, if it was because he wanted the demon to get away from him or if he was curious to test that statement out.

"What's the matter Zelgadis-san?" Xelloss' eyes were open as he moved closer toward Zelgadis as he tried to back away. "Could it be that you really hadn't thought of that before? From your confused emotions, it seems you actually like that idea but aren't sure that you should."

Zelgadis had backed himself up against a bookcase with nowhere to go as Xelloss blocked off his escape routes, placing his hands on the bookshelf on either side of the chimera. He whispered huskily in the chimera's elfin ear, "I know that Brau demon third of you would just love to cause me pain. You do well hiding it from your companions, but I know that you enjoy causing physical pain in others, Zelgadis-san." He lightly bit his ear, "Perhaps not as much as a full-blooded Mazoku like me, but you do still enjoy it."

A shiver ran down Zelgadis' spine. Lina's plan sounded all well and good but right now the young man was doing a horrible job of carrying it out. As Xelloss continued to lick and nibble on Zelgadis ear, his mind was quickly running out of ideas.

At this point, Zelgadis saw only one course of action that could turn the tables on the purple haired priest, but it was incredibly risky. With what Xelloss had just told him, such an action could push the demon over the edge. But, just like Lina, the way Zelgadis saw it was, if he was going to lose the game anyway he may as well feel like he was in control, even if it was fleeting.

With that in mind, Zelgadis took a quick inhale of breath before he swiftly punched Xelloss in the stomach, hard enough that it would have killed a normal human.

Xelloss stumbled back, shocked that Zelgadis actually struck him. He honestly didn't think he would. At least not this early on. Not after what he'd just told him. The Mazoku thought it would take much more to coax the chimera into doing such things, especially since he had made it clear that he hadn't agreed to Xelloss' proposal yet.

These thoughts crossed the dark priest's mind in only a fraction of a second. Immediately after Xelloss had moved backwards from Zelgadis, the chimera made sure to catch Xelloss' eye and smirk at him in triumph before he used his enhanced speed to jump out of the open library window.

Zelgadis knew he only had a few seconds before Xelloss shook off his punch and came after him. He ran as fast as he could, trying to cover as much ground as possible before the Mazoku would undoubtedly materialize before him.

Sadly, he only got as far as the palace gardens before he was struck down by an unseen attack that left him winded and in pain. Considering just how strong Xelloss was, the attack had to be one of his fairly weak ones. The fact that Zelgadis was not permanently mangled was proof enough of that.

He heard Xelloss' voice somewhere past his own ragged breathing, "My, my, Zelgadis-san. I didn't think you would be so quick to tempt me." Zelgadis couldn't see him from where he lay on the ground but he could easily hear the grin in his voice. "Especially after you made it so clear that you haven't accepted my arrangement yet."

The chimera's mind worked frantically to shake off the initial shock of the attack. He'd have the use of his limbs back within a minute or so, but for the moment he was left vulnerable. This was all the more apparent as he could feel Xelloss lift him up by his shirt and was confronted by the demon's eyes mere inches from his own. The look in them was something he hadn't seen there before. Bloodlust mixed with desire.

Zelgadis had the overwhelming feeling that he may have just made a terrible mistake.

Finally getting air back into his lungs, he did his best to disarm the situation while still trying to remain in control of it. "Call it... an… experiment… I guess…" He wheezed but was somehow able to smirk as he did so.

Xelloss' face was still full of different kinds of lust as he held him up by his shirt and grinned, "What? You didn't believe me? Sorry but I'm not falling for that."

The feeling in his legs started to come back and Zelgadis did his best to make them carry his weight so he could at least get Xelloss to stop holding him up by his shirt. "Fine then…" He breathed, "Call it… an impulse then." He smirked, his face dusty from Xelloss making him kiss the dirt moments before. "I'm prone to them... on occasion too you know." He was finally starting to breath normally again.

Despite standing on his own now, Xelloss had yet to release the chimera's clothing. "Regardless of your reasoning, did you think you could get away without facing the consequences?" His dark grin grew, "You knew full well what you were doing too. It makes me think that despite what you say, you really do plan to accept my offer." His grip on Zelgadis' shirt tightened, further preventing his escape.

With the renewed use of his hands, the youth started trying in vain to pry Xelloss fingers off his clothing. "Maybe… or maybe I'm just looking for some payback for all the times you've messed with me."

Xelloss face turned mildly threatening for a moment, "Tempting a Mazoku in that manner is a very dangerous game to play Zelgadis-san."

Zelgadis' only gave him a winning smirk in return, "Perhaps, but there's no game worth winning that doesn't have a few risks right?"

The priest grinned at him, but the lusty look in his eyes didn't abate in the least, "Too true Zelgadis-san, but you should know that's a game that I cannot lose."

Zelgadis didn't relent in their banter, "What makes you think you're playing the right game?"

"Oh?" Xelloss suddenly smiled cheerfully at him, "Just how many different games are you playing now?"

Zelgadis held a finger up in front of him, mocking the trickster priest, "Now _that_ is a secret." He couldn't help but laugh in a small bit of triumph as Xelloss' eyebrow twitched in annoyance at having his own phrase thrown back in his face. But the victory was short-lived as he was thrown severely against a nearby tree in the garden for his efforts.

Xelloss pinned him against the tree, once again preventing his escape, "Games aside, what makes you think I'll let you off the hook for striking me?"

The chimera's face was distorted in mild pain from being thrown against the tree, but that didn't stop his smug grin, "The games are the reason, Xelloss. As it seems to me, you want me and Lina to be your fuck buddies voluntarily." His cocky smirk spread with the use of his foul language, both emphasizing the points he was making. "If you were to 'punish' me right now, without Lina or I agreeing to your terms, what makes you think either of us will agree later on?"

Xelloss growled in a rare show of frustration. He was right. The chimera had actually out-maneuvered him this time. His frustration quickly dissipated when he realized exactly what kind of game the chimera was playing at, and if he wagered a guess, the game Lina would be playing soon too.

This was certainly turning into more fun than even he had expected.

His brief frustration was replaced once again by a grin before he forced a brief bruising kiss on Zelgadis. The chimera didn't even have time to fight back or even reciprocate before it was over and Xelloss was once again looking at him through inhuman eyes. "I hope you know you're playing with fire Zelgadis-san." His smile was dark and full of promises, "But I must admit that I like this little twist you've added."

He placed a hand on Zelgadis cheek, stroking it tenderly, as if he hadn't just attacked the chimera twice, moments before, "If you insist on playing this game of yours you had better not disappoint me."

Zelgadis knew he'd been found out. It angered him that Xelloss had figured it out so early too. But considering Xelloss was a thousand year old empath, it really didn't surprise him. In fact, Zelgadis was more surprised at himself that he had actually believed that he could trick the demon than he was that he'd figured it out so quickly.

All of that aside, Xelloss was going to allow this game of theirs, only reinforcing what Lina had said the night before about allowing them the illusion of choice. It pissed off Zelgadis like nothing else, but at the same time, being able to continue this game he had started thrilled him to no end.

The voice in his head told him Xelloss was already driving him insane, but it was answered by another voice that told him he'd already been driven to insanity years ago and that he should just go along with this new bout of madness because it promised such sinfully good things.

The inner dialogue, along with the previous night's decision that he would eventually sleep with the demon, only solidified the idea that, yes, he had lost his mind.

After the few moments it took for his thoughts to play out, Zelgadis' confident smirk returned, quickly replacing the wide eyed look of being found out, "I don't disappoint."

Xelloss face looked more along the lines of normal as he winked at him, "I hope that's a promise Zelgadis-san." He let his hand fall away from the young man's face and backed away reluctantly, pouting, "In any case I suppose I have to admit that you've won this first round."

The cheerful smile that had been back briefly was once again replaced by open demonic eyes full of lust, "But now that I know the game, you may not win the next round so easily."

Before Zelgadis had a chance to say anything, Xelloss had vanished again. Off to plot his next move.

* * *

><p>When Lina came back to find Zelgadis covered in dirt, he'd told her what had happened. Her anger at their plans being disrupted quickly faded as, like Zelgadis, she came to the conclusion that they had deluded themselves into thinking they could actually trick the trickster.<p>

It didn't take long before new ideas started formulating in her head. "Fine then," she smirked and cracked her knuckles, "Him knowing what we're doing doesn't really change our plans any. If anything it makes them easier to do because we won't have to worry about him figuring it out anymore."

He looked up at her from where he was still beating some of the dirt out of his cloak. "You still plan to go through with it then?"

She shrugged, "Why not? Xelloss knowing what we're doing doesn't change the way I feel about wanting to be in control of the situation, even if it's only in my head."

Zelgadis nodded in agreement, "I'd thought you'd be madder about him figuring it out."

She shook her head, "Nah, I guess I expected it would happen quickly anyway. I just didn't want to admit it," she sighed.

The chimera chuckled, "Well if it makes you feel any better, he actually seemed frustrated that I'd won that round."

"That does make me feel better." She grinned at him, "I guess we'll just have to be happy with beating him on occasion rather than completely outfoxing him."

He smiled, remembering Xelloss' brief frustration at losing, "It's probably just as rewarding anyway."

She nodded, "We'll just have to make sure we keep winning then."

* * *

><p>They set off the next morning, taking three coaches and several horses to accommodate everyone in Lina's group and Prince Phil's small entourage.<p>

Everyone swapped riding in carriages from time to time so they wouldn't be stuck talking to the same people for hours on end. Xelloss occasionally left to do who-knows-what but when he was around, he took a liking to reclining on top of whatever carriage he chose and annoying the coachman by tapping his feet on the roof right by the human's head, 'accidentally' kicking him now and then. This irritated Amelia too, who would scold him whenever she saw him do it.

Xelloss' eyes would sometimes catch with Lina or Zelgadis, as if he was trying to taunt them into starting the next round of their secret games. On the second day of travel he grew tired of waiting.

The Mazoku decided to phase himself into the carriage the two of them now shared with Sylphiel and Gourry. When he suddenly appeared, it was in a stretched out position across Lina and Zelgadis' laps as they were sitting side by side.

"Ah, this is much more comfortable than the roof." He grinned at them lecherously.

He didn't have much time to enjoy his comfy spot as Lina and Zelgadis were quick to shove him off of their laps and push him onto the floor of the coach, yelling obscenities at him. Gourry laughed at the demon's antics and even Sylphiel timidly giggled too.

Lina was not amused though and she kicked him in the head by her feet for good measure. "Haven't you ever heard of personal space Xelloss?"

He merely grinned at her as he picked himself up off the floor and stole the seat next to her, effectively pinning her between himself and Zelgadis and wrapped an arm around her shoulders, even further preventing her escape, "I've heard of it," He smirked, "But I really don't see why you humans insist upon it."

She swatted his arm off of her and shoved his face away, smushing it up against the wall of the carriage. "Well I insist upon it, so hands off." She yelled at him. "You're lucky I don't want to destroy our free ride or I'd Dragon Slave your ass."

He just chuckled at her as she released her grip on his face, shooting him warning glares, letting him know he'd better knock it off in front of Gourry and Sylphiel. He just smiled charmingly at her, completely feigning ignorance.

"What do you want Xelloss?" Zelgadis glared at him over Lina's head.

The demon pouted, "I just came to talk. The coachmen are no fun."

Gourry scratched his head, "Because they don't fight back like Lina does when you bother them?"

Xelloss smiled approvingly at him, "Quite right Gourry-san."

"If you're bored, go do something else. Can't you go a day without bugging us?" Lina's eyebrow twitched in annoyance.

He shrugged happily, "I could, but why would I want to?" He opened an eye to look at both Lina and Zelgadis from where he sat, "You're both just so much fun, and you play the best games." He said in an almost suggestive manner.

Lina and Zelgadis were both surged with an 'oh crap' feeling as they glanced between Xelloss and their two traveling companions.

He grinned at them maniacally for a few moments before turning to Gourry and Sylphiel, "Do you two have any idea the kind of games Lina-san and Zelgadis-san like to play?"

The Mazoku barely finished his sentence before he was brought down into a stranglehold by Lina, in an attempt to shut him up and did her best to dissolve the situation, "Why would they care that we like to play things like chess?" She asked nervously.

Xelloss giggled like an idiot as Lina and Zelgadis' mixed emotions of anger, embarrassment, nervousness and horror ran through him at such close proximity.

Sylphiel had no idea what was going on, but figured it must have something to do with the insanity of demons. Gourry scratched his head in confusion, "Why would you guys get so worked up over chess?"

Xelloss continued to laugh, "Why, because they play a very _special_ versio-" His sentence was cut off as Zelgadis clamped a hand down on his mouth, preventing him from saying anything more. They both knew he could easily break free from Lina and Zelgadis' grip on him if he wanted to, but he seemed to be simply amusing himself with seeing how they would react.

Zelgadis tried to make something up to tell them as his hand stayed clamped on Xelloss' mouth, whose eyes laughed as he made a show of pretending to try to remove the chimera's hand from his face. "We- uh- we play magic infused chess."

Lina chimed in, "Yeah, that's right. Its way more complicated. You guys would find it boring." She smiled at them nervously, hoping the two dimmest of their friends actually bought their story.

Sylphiel and Gourry just looked confused but before they had a chance to ask any more questions Lina abruptly spoke up. "Well enough of that. Zel and I will be right back. We're just going to take the__trash__out." She kicked open the carriage door, she and Zelgadis moving as one as they rushed to carry the demon outside.

Left inside the coach, Gourry scratched his head, "I've never heard of magic chess, have you?" Sylphiel shook her head.

Zelgadis and Lina were quick to cart the laughing Mazoku far enough away from the small convoy before they dumped him on the ground. "Just what the hell was that all about Xelloss?" He wouldn't stop laughing so she kicked him once in the gut where he lay on the ground.

He barely noticed it of course and continued to laugh, "I told you I was bored."

"So you came to try and humiliate us?" Zelgadis snarled.

Xelloss sat up, wiping a tear of mirth from his eye, "I fail to see the difference between what just happened and what I've done in the past."

Lina grabbed him by the front of his cloak, "There's a big difference Xelloss."

He just smiled up at her, "Why? Because you don't want them finding out about our little games? You're the ones causing yourself embarrassment by not letting them know about it."

Both of Lina and Zelgadis' faces turned darker shades of red, "It's none of their business Xelloss." The chimera growled at him.

He continued to chuckle, "No, you just don't want to tell them." He stood up from where he was, still allowing Lina's grip on his cloak. He moved in close to her and opened his eyes slightly, "And why is that?" He grinned at her and reached up to grasp her chin between his thumb and forefinger and asked in a seductive voice, "You wouldn't be _embarrassed_ to tell them a big bad demon like me wants to sleep with you both, would you?"

Lina shuddered as she looked into his inhuman lavender eyes, a few scant inches away. Her anger was melting into arousal at an alarming rate, but her embarrassment was still in full swing. Before she had a chance to shove him away, or even decide if she really wanted to, he closed the distance between them with a searing kiss.

It was the first true kiss she'd had with Xelloss, and while the kisses she shared with Zelgadis were affectionate and warm, this was sinfully stimulating. Her grip on his cloak tightened as her legs felt like they were turning to jelly beneath her. He encircled his arms around her to help keep her on her feet as he deepened the kiss even more.

Zelgadis watched the sight with wide eyes, torn between arousal and jealousy, though he wasn't even sure what it was he was jealous of; Xelloss kissing Lina or being left out.

Xelloss slowly broke the kiss with her. He whispered huskily in her ear, but loud enough for Zelgadis to hear him too, "As much as I enjoy the taste of your embarrassment, especially when it's combined, there's really no reason for it."

He opened his eyes to look at Zelgadis as he began to nibble and lick Lina's ear, "Despite what the two of you say, it's quite obvious at this point that you want what I have to offer." Lina moaned, distracted at the sensations he was causing her and Zelgadis was too entranced watching the two that neither of them thought to deny what he had said.

They didn't have a chance to think about it either as he continued talking, "In any case," he licked the shell of Lina's ear one last time before he broke into a maniacal grin, "I think it's fair to say I've won this round."

Lina's eyes went wide and her anger returned in full force. She tried to smack Xelloss but he vanished before her fist connected. He reappeared next to Zelgadis and quickly kissed him on the cheek and vanished again before the chimera could land a strike on him either.

Laughing like mad, he rematerialized in the air above them and out of their reach and blew them a kiss, "Until tomorrow, my pets."

Lina's Flare Arrow and Zelgadis' Elmekia Lance missed him by miles as he disappeared again.

The two humans were in varying degrees of outrage. Lina was shrieking 'You Bastard!' to the sky where he'd vanished while Zelgadis growled out choice obscenities like 'son of a bitch' and 'damn Mazoku.'

After several long minutes, they eventually worked off enough of their anger and Raywinged back to where the coaches were still traveling. They wouldn't really answer Gourry and Sylphiel's questions, only telling them, 'Don't worry about it. Xelloss is just crazy.'

* * *

><p>The next morning, the group had awoken to eat breakfast made by the inn they had stayed the night in. While the rest of them had opted to eat their meal out on the patio and enjoy the beginnings of such a nice summer day. Lina and Zelgadis had decided to stay indoors, making up some excuse about not wanting to deal with birds.<p>

"You think he'd go for it?" Zelgadis asked, sipping his morning coffee.

"Why? Do you think he wouldn't?" she asked him back, in between bites of strawberry covered pancakes. "Just because there's a wager involved doesn't mean he'd back down." She wiped off some of the red syrup that threatened to dribble down her chin, "In fact, I think a bet would make him more serious about it."

They were discussing their next course of action regarding Xelloss over their breakfast. Zelgadis didn't really like the girl's latest idea but she seemed overly confident that her plan wouldn't fail.

The chimera looked at her skeptically, still unsure about her idea, "That's the problem though. If he took it seriously he'd likely win, and we'd lose the bet you want to wager." He frowned, "I'm not sure I really want to bet that even if you're sure we'd win."

"Bet what?" They whipped their heads around to watch as Xelloss walked into the restaurant from the direction of the patio, actually using the door for once. "Are you two coming up with a new game already?" He grinned at them.

Lina smirked at him while Zelgadis shook his head at her, desperately trying to convey 'don't do it.' Of course she didn't pay him any mind, "We were in fact." Zelgadis groaned and put his forehead in his hand. "We're only about twenty miles from Taforashia now, what would you say to a little race Xelloss?"

Xelloss pulled off one of his gloves and stole one of the syrup drenched strawberries off of Lina's plate, "That would hardly be fair Lina-san. I would win in a moment." He easily distracted her from her thoughts as she and Zelgadis watched him in fascination.

Neither of them had really closely seen his hands before. Each digit had nails that were slightly longer than a normal man usually had and were somewhat pointed. It was as if they were short claws.

He deliberately took his time eating the strawberry and carefully licked his fingers clean before finally bringing her back to the conversation at hand. "You were saying Lina-san?"

She was brought back to the present and scowled at him, "Don't steal my damn food." He just smiled at her as he replaced his glove.

Finally getting back on track, she explained, "That would be part of the rules. You can't use any of your Mazoku abilities."

Xelloss looked contemplative for a moment, "So a Raywing and Levitation race then?"

She nodded at him, "Of course we could make a wager to make it even more interesting." Zelgadis groaned again but didn't protest.

"Oh? What did you have in mind?"

Lina smiled up at him with a grin akin to the way she looked at valuable treasure. "If either of us wins the race, you get to do whatever we say for a day."

Xelloss' smile was instantly mischievous at the idea but just as quickly turned suspicious. Lina already knew what he was thinking about though, "Don't worry, we wouldn't make you divulge any info on how to kill your master or any other Mazoku."

Xelloss' grin returned tenfold, "If you're asking me to be your sex slave for a day I'd gladly do it – no wager required."

Lina and Zelgadis blushed like mad but she quickly recovered, "Actually we were thinking along the lines of making you do stuff like cleaning just to exact a bit of revenge on you."

Xelloss frowned, that sort of thing sounded too much like Lina's dream of Mazoku enslavement to be a coincidence. Maybe she thought about that sort of thing fairly often?

"And if I win?"

Lina's blush darkened but she didn't falter, "_If_ you win, we won't resist anymore."

Xelloss' smile spread across his face like wildfire, "Are you saying you'd agree to my proposal?"

She didn't say anything, but nodded.

"And Zelgadis-san actually agrees to this wager too?"

The chimera just crossed his arms but didn't say anything, neither in agreement or denial. Xelloss shrugged mentally, figuring that not protesting it was Zelgadis' way of agreeing.

"And just what makes you think you could win this race?"

Lina just made a display of shrugging and smirked at him smugly. "Without you using your Mazoku abilities, you should be just as fast as the rest of us right? So that gives us a two out of three chance."

He just had to ask, "If I may, what brought this idea about Lina-san?"

She just continued to grin, "Just trying to keep it interesting. Besides I'm confident we'll win anyway."

Xelloss eyed her suspiciously, he knew she had something up her sleeve, but considering the bets, he didn't really care much. He knew what the humans wagered would be his eventually anyway, but to have what he wanted as early as that evening was too good to pass up. Especially since the only thing he risked to lose was a day of his time, which, truth be told, if he did lose, he felt he could easily turn his status as 'slave for a day' in his favor.

What he didn't know was that Lina had thought all of this through very thoroughly and knew exactly what it was he was thinking.

Xelloss agreed, "Alright then. When would you like to begin our race?"

Lina did her best not to smile too big in her triumph, Xelloss was momentarily distracted from her by Zelgadis' groan in despair anyway, "Let us finish our breakfast first then we'll go."

"I'll be outside when you're ready." He gave a small wave as he walked toward the patio.

When he was out of earshot, Zelgadis hissed at her, "I hope you know what you're doing Lina."

She waved him off as she continued to eat her breakfast. "Relax. Just stick to the plan and we'll win for sure."

"I just want you to know that you're insane." He grumbled at her.

She raised an eyebrow in skepticism. "And you're not? You're awfully quick to forget our conversation from a few nights ago. We already _both_ decided that we'd give him what he wants eventually, what's the harm in having fun with it?"

He just sighed, relenting. He knew she was right, he'd already seen her point days ago. But none of that stopped his natural instincts to resist Xelloss to the bitter end or stop him complaining about it all, for that matter.

After they'd finished up their meal, the two of them headed outside where they found that Xelloss had convinced Amelia to be their race starter.

Their blood ran cold for a moment but it soon become apparent that the only thing the Mazoku had told the others was that they'd challenged him to a race. Their tension was relieved only a short time before Amelia bounded up to them, happily asking them if they were ready to start, and the tension changed from dread to competitive.

They told her yes, and short goodbyes were exchanged before the three of them stood ready at the line Amelia had made in the dirt.

"Ok you guys." She waved at them happily, "We'll see you this afternoon in Taforashia then." She raised her arm up signaling them to get ready. Lina shared a brief look with Zelgadis who nodded at her in turn.

"On your mark! Get set! GO!" Amelia's arm swung down and the three of them were off at speeds no normal human without magical abilities could manage.

Lina and Xelloss started off neck and neck as they used Raywing, but Zelgadis quickly took off, running ahead of them using his demon speed.

Xelloss face was comical, "You said no demonic powers allowed in this race." He yelled to Lina above the rushing wind around them.

She laughed as they continued to fly at break-neck speeds, obviously finding it hilarious that they had actually tricked him this time. "No. The only rule was that _you_ couldn't use your demonic powers."

Xelloss face quickly changed as he opened his inhuman eyes to look at her and smiled darkly, "I see how it is." She could barely hear him over the rushing wind, but she didn't need to. She could understand what was about to happen by the look on his face and she cursed this one oversight.

"Well if that's the one and only rule." His dark look becoming more demonic by the second, "Then I suppose that means I'm free to do__this__."

With that one word he snatched her from mid-air as they continued to Raywing and flung her into a tree that they happened to be conveniently passing at the right moment.

The wind was knocked out of her lungs, and she was pretty sure she'd have a headache later, but she was overall alright. Xelloss knew she'd been through much worse than that before. He'd only used enough force to slow her down.

He had passed her by without so much as a minor decrease in his speed. He needed to do something about Zelgadis' serious lead without using any of his own Mazoku powers.

Xelloss' feet tore up earth as he landed, momentum from Raywing still carrying him as he slammed his staff into the dirt, "Dug Haut!"

Quite a ways ahead of Xelloss, Zelgadis only had enough time to see the ground shoot up in front of him before he ran into the sudden obstacle at full speed.

It was completely unexpected and he clutched at his aching head from where he lay on the ground after the sudden impact, trying to figure out what just happened before the answer flew past him in the form of Xelloss who waved at him happily as he zipped passed.

Before Zelgadis even had a chance to stand up, Lina had caught up to the chimera, cape covered in tree splinters and yelled at him. "Don't just sit there looking stupid! We've gotta catch him!"

That was all the prompting he needed. He quickly picked her up and carried her bridal style as he dashed off again using his enhanced speed.

Back on the patio of the inn, Amelia and the rest of them had been watching the three race off into the distance. Now that the aftermath of the Dug Haut attack blocked their view, they could no longer see them.

Amelia nervously rubbed the back of her neck, "Uh… just what kind of race are they having?"

Sylphiel was standing next to her as they watched them race off, "I haven't the foggiest."

Out past where they could see, Lina was currently throwing a barrage of Flare Arrows at Xelloss from her new place in Zelgadis' arms. She was too upset at the moment to be shy about the closeness and she continued to grow angrier by the second as Xelloss continuously dodged her attacks.

Even though she hadn't hit him, she and Zelgadis finally surpassed him since the Mazoku's fastest speed under the agreed terms of the race was by using Raywing, which Zelgadis was faster than.

Lina shifted in Zelgadis' arms so she could lean over the top of his shoulders and stick her tongue out at Xelloss as they passed him by, then started up again throwing Flare Arrows behind them to try and slow the priest down.

Zelgadis tried in vain to stop Lina's squirming in his arms, shifting her weight, trying to get her attention back on where she was. She was too busy trying to land an attack on Xelloss to realize that she was shoving her breasts right up against Zelgadis' blushing face.

"Lina, I can't see where I'm going with your b-", luck wasn't on his side. He couldn't even finish his sentence before he tripped over a fallen tree and landed on top of her on the ground; face still in her cleavage.

Xelloss once again passed them, laughing at the situation they found themselves in and seriously wishing he could stick around and watch, but with Zelgadis' speed he couldn't afford to slow.

The wind was knocked out of Lina's lungs once again from the weight of Zelgadis landing on her, and his wire hair had sliced through the front of her shirt in several different places, many of which he was able to catch a brief glance of bleeding skin.

As soon as he could, he picked them both off the ground and took off again, once again carrying her bridal style. While he ran, she finally caught the breath he had knocked out of her. "Gods Zel, just how much do you weigh? That hurt! I think I cracked a rib." She cringed as she spoke. It definitely hurt to breathe.

Zelgadis apologized to her over the rushing wind as she cast a healing spell on herself from where she rode in his arms. Now that she was focused on her torso she squawked as she noticed that her shirt was barely held together.

She tied the inner laces of her cape that held it together when it was cold out. It wasn't the best coverage but it would have to do for now.

Lina and Zelgadis had lost a lot of time when they'd hit the ground and still hadn't caught up to Xelloss yet, though they could clearly see him ahead of them.

Trying to maintain his speed while weaving in between trees and keeping an eye out for flare arrows, Xelloss didn't see the small throwing dagger that nearly struck him. The dagger hitting him wasn't the problem however. As the small projectile hit its true mark, Xelloss quickly made friends with the forest floor after abruptly falling out of his flight as soon as his shadow was struck with the Shadow Snap. As it turns out, gravity couldn't care less about shadow entrapment spells.

The fall didn't really hurt him, but he was stuck laying on a bed of rocks that wasn't really all that comfortable as the Shadow Snap froze him in the Raywing flying pose he'd been caught in. He was pretty sure that if he was human, the pine cone that his face had landed on would have left a permanent impression.

Lina and Zelgadis once again passed him. The red-head gloated at him as they ran by, "Taking a nap, Xelloss?"

This was not the first time the demon priest had ever been caught in a Shadow Snap however, and was quick to summon a simple Lighting spell to free himself of it. As soon as he was able to move again, he raised himself up on one knee and readied his arms as if he were holding a bow and aiming at the retreating duo. "Freeze Arrow!"

He shot three arrows at them just for good measure, all of which hitting their targets of course, freezing Zelgadis' feet to the ground and encasing most of Lina and Zelgadis' bodies in ice.

Xelloss had made sure the magical ice only covered them where it would freeze them to the spot temporarily and not endanger their lives. Their heads being clear of the ice so they'd be able to hear his taunt when he overtook them again was just a bonus. "I'm looking forward to a pleasant evening with you both!"

"You haven't won this yet!" Lina yelled after him as he sped off yet again, already working on conjuring a fire spell that would free them from the ice. It was a little tricky with both of her hands literally frozen in place, but she wasn't called a sorcery genius for nothing. In record time, she had melted all the ice holding her and Zelgadis in place, but they still took a big hit to their time against Xelloss.

Zelgadis was trying his best to make up the gap between them and Xelloss by running as hard as he possibly could, but he wasn't completely sure they could catch up again quick enough.

With the beginnings of the city of Taforashia coming upon them quickly, it was obvious that Xelloss thought he'd as good as won as he continued to Raywing backwards at full speed, smiling back at them happily.

Even though Zelgadis' demon speed was faster than Raywing, there was no way they could catch up to Xelloss before he reached the city limits of Taforashia.

Neither Zelgadis or Lina were ready to admit defeat though, and there was still one last ditch effort they could try in their attempt to win.

"Do it Zel!" Lina screamed.

He knew exactly what she was talking about and quickly shifted her in his arms and hurled her as hard as he could while he kept running at full speed.

As Xelloss continued to fly toward what he was certain would be his victory and his well earned prizes, his thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Lina's screaming getting close to him… and then passing him by.

He blinked in confusion a few times, looking back at Zelgadis and then out in front of him where he was just in time to see Lina casting a hasty Raywing, narrowly missing slamming into the outer most wall of Taforashia.

Lina was frazzled by the close call but she continued to fly well into the city just to be clear in no uncertain terms that she'd won. Quickly finding one of the small streams that ran through the city, near the palace, Lina finally allowed herself to collapse at its bank. Not even two seconds later Xelloss landed beside her, followed closely by Zelgadis, really showing just how ridiculously narrow their race had been.

Lina was still breathing hard from their exhausting challenge, but even though she could barely breathe from her injuries, use of magic and being hurled through the air at about seventy-five miles an hour, she couldn't help but laugh like a giggling maniac at the look on Xelloss' face.

It was priceless, and she had a great view of it from where she lay on the grass looking up at him. His eyebrows were as far up into his hairline as they could possible go, his eyes were as wide and shocked as she'd ever seen them and his mouth hung open slightly.

He honestly and truly couldn't believe he'd just lost.

At her maniacal laughing he was able to close his mouth at least but was still unable to close his eyes or school his face back into any semblance of normal before Zelgadis managed to catch a glimpse of it too. To which, the chimera laughed in triumph along with her.

Finally having caught her breath enough, Lina jumped up from where she lay on the ground to hop up on Zelgadis' back and proceeded to wave her arm around in victory.

Zelgadis couldn't help himself, her joy was infectious and he allowed himself to be swept up in the moment of their triumph. He grabbed one of the legs she had wrapped around his waist and his other hand grabbed the arm she had draped around his shoulders and he spun them around once, actually letting himself share the happiness of the moment for a change.

When he stopped their spin, Lina struck up a victory sign in Xelloss' face and Zelgadis had the biggest smirk as they both looked at the Mazoku, whose own expression had finally dissolved from shock to annoyance.

"We won Xelloss!" Lina continued her 'victory pose' while still on Zelgadis' back "And you know what that means!"

The demon's eyebrow twitched sporadically but he answered. "Yes."

"You have to do what we say for a whooooole day," She drawled out, "But more importantly…" She trailed off, tapping Zelgadis' shoulder to signal his cue.

He picked up on what she wanted him to say and finished for her "We win this round." He gave Xelloss a grin that bordered somewhere between mischievous and malicious.

Xelloss' eye was actually beginning to twitch as they started laughing again, "Fine." He sighed, "A deal's a deal." He was still annoyed but he tried to switch tracks and go with the plans he'd come up with in the case that he lost.

"What do you want me to do then? Should I serve you breakfast in bed tomorrow?" He was easily able to turn on the flirting and suggestiveness despite the fact that he was still really shocked and annoyed. He winked at them coyly, "Perhaps you'd like it if I wore a chained collar? You could make me wear tight leather pants and have me dance a striptease for you." In a more suggestive voice, he added, "Or maybe you'd prefer it if I wore a cute, _tiny_ little maid skirt and served you tea?" He pulled at the imaginary hem of the skirt he was envisioning and made a seductive face as he continued to wink.

Zelgadis' jaw dropped and he very nearly dropped Lina too. Those statements put _way_ too many ideas in the young man's head. When Xelloss chuckled at his wide eyed expression, Zelgadis was quick to shut his mouth again and scowl at the Mazoku.

Lina climbed down from Zelgadis' back. The things the purple haired priest said put plenty of dirty ideas in her head too, but fortunately, she was narrow minded enough in her prizes that she was able to stay on topic.

She shook her finger at him, grinning, "Oh no-no-no. No turning this around to benefit you." He pouted at her and she added, "Besides, whoever said the day would be tomorrow anyway?"

He raised an eyebrow in question. She continued to grin at him, "We decided that if we won we'd save our prize for a rainy day."

From behind her Zelgadis only nodded and his dark smirk from earlier returned. Xelloss could tell they obviously had yet _another_ plan up their sleeves involving his 'slave day', but before he had a chance to question them, someone called out to the three.

"Hey guys! Long time no see!" They turned around to see Pakota in his adult body waving to them from a ways away, past the other side of the stream.

As Lina and Zelgadis moved to meet him on the bridge, Xelloss followed slowly behind them, knowing he'd have to wait for another time to figure out what these latest plans were.

Xelloss frowned as he stared into the dirt and wondered if this was how it felt to be on the other end of his never ending secret motives.

* * *

><p>AN<p>

I felt I probably overused the game idea, but there was a reason for it. It's because they're all constantly shoving their victories in each others faces. LOL

Sexy stuff will happen in the next chapter! I promise :D

Please Review! You'll get an internet cookie if you do!


	5. Drugs for a Demon

AN

Ok, so now that Pakota/Duclis is on the scene I wanted to make it clear that, (just like I'm having Pakota living in Duclis' body and Duclis himself is dead like in the manga version) Pakota looks like the manga version of Duclis which is tooootally different than the anime version. If you haven't seen the manga Duclis you should go do that. He's a total bishounen cutie.

Also, I have designed the Slayers ball outfits! There's a link in my profile. You must see! I'm quite proud of how I designed them :D I was originally going to just do Lina, Xel and Zel's but I got carried away and did all the Slayers ^_^;;

Anyways, five chapters in and we're finally starting to get to the seriously sexy stuff! This chapter is rated NC-17.

If you really want to skip over it you can go to the next section which is most of the way down this chapter. But honestly, if you wanted to go without the sexy stuff, why are you still reading this? LOL

Disclaimer:I don't own Slayers. If I did, Lina would have more potentially romantic situations with Xel and Zel.

Enjoy!

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><p>Lina and Zelgadis had been shown to their rooms in the guest wing of the palace and the redhead had been able to get a change of clothes. Fortunately, the closed cape covered any evidence of her destroyed shirt and she was able to get away with a simple excuse; that she wanted to change out of her sweaty clothes after their race and the rest of her clothing was in a suitcase back with Amelia and the others.<p>

So she'd been given a summer dress in Taforashia style that was ten years out of fashion. It was newly made clothing but getting up to date with the fashion sense around the world had been pretty low on the list of things to do for the citizens. The dress still looked good, if a little plain.

In her guest quarters, with her new outfit, Lina untied her cape and set it aside along with her pauldrons and gloves. She pulled off was what left of her shirt and undershirt and sighed. It was probably time for a new look anyway. She tossed the remnants to the side in a separate pile than her cape, intending to throw the scrap away later and turned to the full length mirror she'd been standing beside and took a glance at herself in the reflection.

Whenever she was alone with a large enough mirror, she'd gotten into the habit of checking out various sexy poses in the reflection. These little sessions usually ended with her pushing her breasts together and up to make them look bigger while saying anything between 'I think I may have actually gotten a little bigger' to 'Why won't you grow?'

This time was really no different as she cupped her naked breasts and sighed, "Maybe I should get fat then lose the weight? That ought to work. Breasts are supposed to be the last thing to lose fat after all."

"Your metabolism is much too high for that."

Lina's eyes popped open wide and she squawked in indignation as she moved to cover her chest but Xelloss had already materialized behind her and caught her hands, holding them away from her body.

"What the hell do you think you're doing!?" Lina was bright red and she tried her damnedest to cover her chest, while she stomped on his foot and head butt him with the back of her head. He was unfazed by all of it and he quickly tied her hands behind her back using her discarded shirt that he'd inexplicably picked up at some point.

Her rage and humiliation overrode her rationality, "Fireba-" She was quickly cut off by Xelloss' gloveless hand clamped over her mouth.

"Now, now Lina-san." He smirked at her from the reflection of the mirror, still standing behind her, "You and I both know that without your hands to guide your magic, any spell you cast will go amok and has more chance of hitting you than me."

He seemed to be satisfied by her angry glare at him from the reflection and removed his hand from her mouth. Free from his hands she immediately tried to bend over and shield her chest from his sight while screeching at him. "Just what the hell do you think you're doing here Xelloss?"

He grabbed her by the shoulder, forcing her to stand in full view of the mirror again so he could see her nude torso in the reflection. He reached around in front of her with one of his gloveless hands and delicately caressed the skin of her stomach while the other came around to finger the necklace he'd given her. He leaned in close, "Why, enjoying the view of course."

His warm breath tickled her ear when he spoke and an involuntary shiver ran down her spine when he ran his tongue along the lobe.

After a moment, she regained herself and renewed her struggles in his grasp. "Just what the hell gives you the right to come in here while I'm changing and tie me up you bastard?"

She kicked him in the shin several times but he remained undaunted as he held her by her shoulders and smiled lustily, "I claim no right but I know I'm not doing anything that you don't want." He turned her head so she would be forced to look directly into his open eyes as he continued to grin.

He was right of course. Along with the anger and embarrassment of this situation, Lina also felt excitement and slight fear. However, it wasn't a serious fear of him, it was more a fear of apprehension, not knowing what he was going to do and how far this little episode would go.

'_Damn Mazoku and their freaking empathy._'

Being excited didn't change the fact that she felt completely humiliated being bound and on display like this. She growled out in anger, "Untie me right now you fucking bastard."

He still had his hand on her face, holding her gaze, "Now now Lina-san, that's quite a mouth you have." His lusty grin took on an impish light as he leaned into kiss her.

Her anger quickly turned hazy. It just wasn't fair! That damn demon could turn her into a needy mass of jelly with just his kisses. She randomly wondered if he glossed his lips with aphrodisiacs or something but her mind was brought back when his tongue entered her mouth and suddenly she remembered she was still pissed at him.

She bit down as hard as her little human teeth could and he pulled away in sheer surprise. Xelloss reached up to touch his mouth and found that there was some dark fluid there.

Lina momentarily forgot her anger in exchange for intrigue. She didn't know his human shell could bleed. It was clearly not normal though as it was black in color. Her look of surprise suddenly grew when Xelloss' eyes looked into hers, filled with even more demonic lust and she suddenly realized what she'd done.

How could she forget what Zel had told her about their masochistic little battle?

Xelloss quickly moved in to kiss her even more passionately. When his tongue made its way back into her mouth, she didn't bite down again, but ended up tasting the Mazoku's blood instead. It was a strange thing. It was like concentrated magic in liquid form. It tingled with dark energy and tasted of a pleasant bitterness, much like black coffee.

He broke the kiss to lick and nibble at her neck and mumbled against her skin. "You really shouldn't do things like biting me unless you're prepared for situations to get really serious Lina-san."

He grazed his teeth along her neck and kneaded her breasts until she moaned lightly. Even in her hazy mind, Lina could tell he was trying hard to keep in complete control of himself and not move any quicker in this little dance than he had planned.

He pulled back and grabbed her jaw and looked seriously at her, "Do you understand?" She nodded, "Are you going to behave?" She nodded again. He grinned lecherously, "Do you want me to continue?"

Lina scowled at him. It was quite obvious she didn't want to say no but was too proud to say yes. Instead she went with "Untie me."

He chuckled lightly, "Sorry, but not right now." She grit her teeth and was about to yell at him again but all that came out was a strangled yelp, when he suddenly slipped a hand down the front of her pants and lightly brushed his pointed nail against her clit.

Xelloss smirked and repeated his words slowly to get her attention, "Do you want me to continue?" He rubbed the nub lightly and she begrudgingly nodded her head.

It was apparent he was feeling vindictive as he teasingly played with her opening, and said in a slightly sing-song voice, "You have to ask for it."

She growled out in defiance, intent on holding onto her pride until the bitter end. Adding to her tension, he leaned down and licked one of her nipples, taking her other breast in his free hand while still teasing her womanhood.

She gasped and felt completely ashamed as the word "Please!" flew out of her mouth before she even had a chance to think about it.

He smiled against her breast and lightly teased her nipple with his fang. He was feeling especially smug today, "Please what?"

Lina snarled in frustration, trying to keep quiet but she couldn't stay silent anymore when he slipped one of his fingers inside her just barely, enough to drive her past caring about her dignity. "Would you just get on with it and finger me Xelloss!"

The exclamation was better than he expected and Xelloss gave her what she asked for. He plunged his probing finger inside her as far as it would go and when she threw her head back to moan he silenced her cries with a searing kiss.

He happily licked up the little bit of his own Mazoku blood that had been left on her lips from earlier. Suddenly overcome with a demonic need to taste her own, he bit down lightly, enough to draw a small bead of her own crimson out. She gasped in pain and pleasure as he greedily licked the small amount up and added a second finger to the first, moving them in and out faster as his thumb rubbed her clit.

Xelloss knew Lina was a virgin but when he found no resistance inside her he wasn't at all surprised. As active as the girl was, constantly fighting, riding horses, beating up bandits, she probably broke that barrier years ago and never even knew it. All for the better, this way she'd have only enjoyment.

Lina started to rock her hips in time with Xelloss' fingers involuntarily as she swiftly moved closer to what she knew must be her first orgasm. She was just on the precipice when he suddenly pulled his fingers out of her and moved his hand completely out of her pants, breaking the kiss. It took a few moments for her head to clear and figure out what just happened. When she did she was livid.

"You _asshole_! What the hell did you do that for?"

He had a horribly smug looking grin, "I have better plans."

Before she could scream at him that whatever his plans were; she hated them already for not letting her come, he had picked her up off the ground so that she'd be forced to wrap her legs around his waist in order not to fall and moved them over to a nearby lounging sofa.

He sat them both down, making is so that Lina was straddling him. The blush that had been gracing her features the entire time darkened significantly as she could feel the hardness of his human body's arousal pressing against her sensitive area through the layers of their clothing.

He gripped her thighs, trying to coax her into moving. He whispered huskily in her ear, "Move yourself against me. Make yourself climax."

A needy chill ran through her as he lightly grazed a trail down her neck with one of his fangs. Lina was far too gone to offer any kind of complaint or protest, so she began to grind against him with inexperienced vigor.

After a few minutes she whimpered in frustration. She just couldn't get what she needed this way. There was too much clothing and not enough friction and she was just too damned inexperienced. "Xelloss, touch me again."

He grinned against her neck as his hands continued to fondle her breasts, "But I am touching you."

She seriously wanted to bash his head in. "You know what I mean you jackass." Before he had a chance to add some more annoying word play, she clarified, too needy to care about her pride. "Finger me again." She kept moving against him in vain, "Please."

He smirked evilly, "No I don't think I will." Before she had a chance to get outraged, he grinned like a maniac and added, "Why don't you ask Zelgadis-san to help you out? He's been outside the door for a good five minutes trying to decide what he should do."

Lina's eyes grew to the size of dinner plates and she could clearly hear some sudden muffled movements from the other side of her door. "What?"

Xelloss just chuckled, "No doubt he came up here for some reason and his enhanced ears allowed him to hear everything, after which he couldn't decide what to do." His grin grew even larger and he raised his voice slightly, more conversationally than out of necessity, "Isn't that right Zelgadis-san? At this point you may as well come in."

Having been caught, there was nothing left for the chimera to do but knock on the door. He wasn't meaning to eavesdrop. It had just happened. He'd come up to get Lina for lunch when he'd clearly heard their activities and he just couldn't bring himself to leave or knock on her door.

Lina was in a bit of shock at the knock, though she wasn't entirely sure why. She knew it was Zel and it wasn't like it was Pakota or Amelia on the other side of the door. She guessed it might be because she sort of felt like she was caught cheating on Zelgadis or something. Even though Lina knew that thinking that in this unique situation of theirs was absurd. If this was going to continue, she'd need to work on that.

The demon beneath her was highly amused, "Well? Aren't you going to invite him in?"

Lina tried her best to shake out of her reverie, "C-come _ahem,_ come in Zel."

Zelgadis opened the door slowly, somewhat apprehensive of what he might find. He was greeted with a profile view of a bare-chested Lina straddling Xelloss. He quickly moved inside the room and all but slammed the door behind him despite the fact that no one was out in the halls. His blush was dark and his eyes were wide as he was unable to look away from Lina's bare breasts.

She didn't mean to but she felt self-conscious again and she did her best to hide her naked front by shrugging her shoulders and moving close to Xelloss.

Of course he wasn't going to have any of that. He quickly spun her around in his lap, holding her shoulders back and presented her like she was a prize. "Zelgadis-san, can you believe that our adorable little sorcery genius _still_ feels self-conscious about her bust size? Would you please help me convince her that that's just silly."

He smiled happily and cupped one of her breasts for emphasis. "Don't you think they're perfect how they are?" He lightly pinched the nipple in his hand and she choked on a moan, "They're so soft and fit in the palm of your hand just right."

Zelgadis could only stare blankly and numbly bob his head up and down ever so slightly.

The priest made a sound of disappointment, "Oh! But wait-" He tapped his finger on his chin as his other hand continued to rub Lina's breast, the sorceress herself had a very lusty expression on her face that seemed to be stuck there. "You probably haven't touched Lina-san's breasts yet, have you?" He kept the mock innocent look on his face but the urge to smirk was rather strong.

The chimera absently shook his head 'no,' eyes still locked fastidiously on the sight before him.

Xelloss finally allowed the grin to spread across his face, "Well, we need to fix that don't we?"

With that he grabbed Lina by the hips and effortlessly moved them both into a standing position with Lina in front of him facing the stone-skinned youth, "Well then Zelgadis-san, why don't you come over here then?"

He seemed to snap out of his trance and slowly started to move forward, finally noticing the girl's hands. "Exactly why are Lina's hands tied?"

"So she couldn't cast a fireball in my face." Zelgadis' look instantly turned angry, "Before you go jumping to conclusions, I didn't do anything to Lina-san that she didn't want." He leaned into the aforementioned girl from behind, pressing his still aroused length into her bare back through his clothes while a clawed hand delicately played across her neck. "Isn't that right Lina-san?"

She whimpered lightly at the pressure at her back, "Yes, but this bastard wouldn't let me come." She was starting to get overly frustrated now.

"Ah, Lina-san, you'll eventually understand that withholding pleasure only means more enjoyment later." He chuckled. "But if you want it you should ask Zelgadis-san for it like I suggested."

The look on her face was desperate to say the least, "Please Zel."

He couldn't deny her surprisingly needy request and in two long strides he crossed the remaining distance and wrapped his arms around the petite girl, ignoring Xelloss' closeness, and kissed her, "Whatever you want Lina."

He was more than happy to give her what she wanted. His hands moved to cup her breasts as he kissed his way down the side of her neck that Xelloss wasn't tracing his nails across. After a few moments, he stopped to take his fingerless gloves off in frustration so he could get a better feel in the palms of his hands. She giggled lightly as she remembered herself doing the same thing in the forest only a few days ago.

He moved lower to take one of her nipples in his mouth as his arms moved around her back to try to untie the cloth binding her hands. Xelloss stopped him however, "Why don't you leave that there for now?"

Zelgadis had become so engrossed in Lina he'd almost forgotten the demon was there. He just pretended to ignore him but continued to move his hand down the girl's body and slipped it into her pants. She moaned in ecstasy as he wasted no time in giving her exactly what she needed.

Between Xelloss' body at her back and his lightly caressing clawed nails and Zelgadis' mouth on her nipple and his rough, hard fingers moving in her with skill, it took no time at all for her to finally see stars behind her eyes.

She began to cry out her first climax quite loudly but was forced to moan out her pleasure instead as Xelloss quickly turned her head and quieted her with a deep kiss. As much as he would love to hear her cries of orgasm, he could sense a few maids down the hall within earshot of Lina's screaming, and he knew he wouldn't get to complete his plans if they were interrupted.

Lina collapsed back against the Mazoku in a boneless heap, completely unable to stand on her own anymore as she gasped for air.

Xelloss stroked her hair gently, "Did you enjoy yourself?"

She nodded dazedly but quite enthusiastically, still trying to catch her breath and find her voice.

He smiled at her reaction, "Wouldn't you like to return the favor for Zelgadis-san?"

The chimera blushed, "She doesn't have to-"

"I want to." Lina perked up, still out of sorts and breathing hard, but wanting to give Zelgadis the same feeling in return. "Untie me."

Zelgadis once again reached around to untie her but he was stopped yet again. "Leave it." Xelloss smiled cheerily.

Lina scowled at him and demanded in a still shaky voice, "If my hands are tied how can I return the favor to Zel?"

He stroked her jaw with one hand, a mischievous twinkle in his demon eyes, "You've got a perfectly good mouth don't you?"

Lina and Zelgadis' blushes darkened, "She doesn't have to do that if she doesn't want to."

"Nonsense," He stepped away from Lina, who was now able to stand on her own again and slowly circled around the two of them, moving closer to the chimera, "I know she wants to."

"Can't I keep anything from you?" Lina was looking down at Zelgadis' feet.

"No, not really."

She sighed and looked away at the floor, "I know I won't be any good at it."

"Everyone has to start somewhere." The Mazoku was at Zelgadis' side now, "I'll help you."

His smile was huge as the two humans turned to look at him. He just moved up behind Zelgadis who was now on edge and a little weirded out. "What are you doing?"

Instead of answering him he embraced him from behind, making their bodies flush. The chimera's eyes went wide when he felt the demon's arousal on his backside, "You better behave and play nice Zelgadis-san or I'll restrain you too." He told him happily.

He knew it was no idle threat and the youth was still as the beast priest's hands roamed along the front of his body. '_Xelloss gets what Xelloss wants.__' _Zelgadis could finally admit, to himself at least, that it was just easier to go along with him. The end result would be the same anyway.

Zelgadis could barely suppress a traitorous whimper when Xelloss lightly bit one of his sensitive ears as one of his hands fondled his hardened length through his trousers.

Lina watched all of this with rapt attention. The sight was so mesmerizing. Forget about Xelloss turning her into a voyeur, she knew now that she already was one.

Demon hands undid Zelgadis' belts and his sword was lowered to the floor slowly so as not to make noise. When they reach for the hem of his pants, the youth reflexively grabbed to stop them but he quickly found that hand behind his back in a vice-like grip.

"What wrong Zelgadis? I know you want this." Xelloss' nibbled on the chimera's neck, "Perhaps you want to test out those masochistic tendencies of your demon third? I'd be happy to oblige you." His nibbling turned painful as Xelloss' strong demon teeth easily broke the stone skin of Zelgadis' neck and he barely held back a pleasured yell.

Xelloss greedily lapped up the pooling blood. There wasn't much of it, Zelgadis' enhanced body was already healing the minor wound, but it was enough to set the demon's body on fire. It took a lot of willpower not to just forget all his planning and rip the man's clothing off right then and there and bend him over the lounge chair.

From where she was, Lina could see the look in Xelloss' eyes as he fought to remain in control and she couldn't help but feel a bit of worry. It didn't take too long before he regained his composure and smiled reassuringly at her, obviously having felt her trepidation.

The episode had caused Xelloss' grip on Zelgadis wrist to tighten much more than he meant. It was probably going to leave a bruise, even with the chimera's stone skin and fast healing.

He released his arm and reached again for the hem of his pants, "No more resistance right?"

Zel shook his head mutely.

"Good." Xelloss lifted up the edge of the youth's tunic and pulled down his trousers just low enough to expose him to Lina's view.

Zelgadis looked away, feeling completely humiliated. He hated his stone body, and despite Lina's conviction that she didn't care about what he looked like, he still feared that she'd be revolted by him.

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted when Xelloss' hand began stroking him. He gasped at the touch and looked to see Lina blushing up to the roots of her hair but not at all disgusted by him. If anything she looked eager.

"See Zelgadis-kun? There's nothing to fret over. Honestly. You both are just so self conscious." Lina scowled at him but he ignored her. "Lina-chan and I both like your body. Isn't that right?"

She agreed wholeheartedly, but set aside the fact that Xelloss had changed his titles for them for her to ponder over later. "He's right. Who gives a damn about what people who don't know you think Zel? We like you just as you are." She smiled up at him encouragingly.

Xelloss tightened his grip on him as he stroked again, making the chimera groan. "Not to mention the added benefits of having such a _hard_ body." He grinned wildly, "Just think of all the great fun we can have with your unique physiology."

Zelgadis could tell that the demon had already dreamed up a mountain of sexual fantasies involving his stone body but when Lina carefully moved to kneel in front of him he really couldn't bring himself to care one way or the other.

The Mazoku stopped his stroking of Zelgadis' cock, allowing Lina to timidly lick the shaft. Zelgadis allowed a moan to escape his lips, wanting to show Lina his approval. It worked, and she gained more confidence, kissing and licking the tip before putting the head in her mouth and sucking on it.

He ran his fingers through her hair, trying desperately to not lose control and buck into her mouth as Xelloss resumed his stroking, though at a much more sedate pace so as not to interfere with Lina's novice ministrations.

Aside from the fact that he hadn't been touched by another in so many years, with the combination of her mouth, Xelloss' stroking, nibbling on his sensitive ears and grinding his own clothed hardness into his backside it didn't take long before he was clenching some loose strands of Lina's hair and calling out his warning.

He gasped, "Lina! I'm coming!" He tried to gently pull her away from him but she ignored it, continuing to suck him as he climaxed. She tried her best to keep it all in her mouth but she hadn't been fully prepared and most of it streamed out the corners of her lips and dribbled down to cover her naked breasts and torso.

Zelgadis' legs became unable to effectively hold his weight and he collapsed back against Xelloss. He would be incredibly pissed about it later but he felt just too damned good to care about it right then.

Xelloss tenderly moved some of the wire hair out of his face and kissed him. Still coming back down from his ecstasy, Zelgadis willingly reciprocated the deep kiss. He could taste the remnants of his own blood on the demon's mouth along with a strange, pleasantly bitter, electric taste that he couldn't identify.

The Mazoku broke the kiss, pleased, and in classic Xelloss fashion, proceeded to break the mood, "See? That wasn't so bad."

The chimera mumbled something that sounded a lot like 'Fuck you Xelloss.' but without any negativity to back it up.

Xelloss chuckled impishly, "Not today but I promise it will happen."

Zelgadis swatted his hand away from his face and stepped away from him on still wobbly legs, pulling his pants up. "You know damn well I didn't mean it like that." His face was in a scowl but he still couldn't muster up any anger behind his words.

He grinned back at him, "True, but I meant what I said." He winked at him cheerfully.

Xelloss looked down at Lina and the image was so incredibly arousing. Since her hands were still tied behind her back, she hadn't been able to maneuver herself off the floor and she was still dripping in Zelgadis' seed. Judging by the look on her face, she liked her current state a lot too.

Xelloss allowed himself to kneel down next to her on his hands and knees and began licking all the stray fluids off of her. She mewled like a kitten and Zelgadis was transfixed on the display with wide, unblinking eyes. He knew if this kept up, it wouldn't be long before he was hard again.

Fortunately, Xelloss seemed to have been set in his task and soon Lina was once again clean of fluids for the most part. He gave her a swift, sultry kiss then broke away. Snapping his fingers, the shirt remnants safely burned away from her in a familiar green flame.

Despite everything that had just occurred, upon finding her hands unbound she immediately punched him in the face. "That's for popping into my room while I was changing and tying me up."

He blinked at her then immediately laughed and kissed her affectionately. "In that case I'll be sure to do it again."

She screeched in indignation. "Can't you at least _pretend_ that I'm mad at you?"

He continued to laugh as he stood up and offered her his hand. "No, because you're not really mad at me."

She took the offered hand and moved to her feet as well. "At least I'm acting mad!" She crossed her arms in a huff.

He grinned seductively, "I know, and I appreciate it. Genuine or not, your anger is _delicious_."

Now she really _was_ getting mad. "Who the hell says I'm acting mad for your benefit?"

He shrugged noncommittally, still grinning, "No one."

She growled, "For your information I'm acting mad because I want to. Not to make you happy."

He winked at her, "That's fine too. Your obstinacy is always entertaining."

She grabbed him by the front of his cloak to yell in his face. "One of these days you won't like my stubborn streak."

He just chuckled and gently pried her fingers off without much effort. "We'll see."

The short scene with shirtless Lina squabbling with Xelloss was very odd to Zelgadis but he got the feeling he would be seeing more events like this in the future.

Xelloss summoned his staff into hand from wherever he'd left it.

Confused, Lina asked, "You're leaving? Don't you want… you know…" She mumbled and realized how ridiculous she sounded after all they'd just done and she was still standing shirtless. "Don't you want us to do something for you?"

He smiled happily at her, he suddenly couldn't get over just how damn adorable she was. It had to be their mixed post-climactic euphoria messing with his own mind. Now that he noticed it, he did feel something akin to what humans felt when they were high.

He kissed her tenderly on the cheek. "Don't worry about me. I want to save mine for another day."

She was still confused but Zelgadis sighed in exasperation, quick to understand. "You really are a masochistic bastard aren't you Xelloss?"

Xelloss giggled madly, yep, he was definitely experiencing some sort of high off of their sexually satisfied emotions. That was awfully strange. He'd never experienced that with any of his human lovers in the past. He'd have to look into that.

Lina and Zelgadis were mildly put off by his insane giggling. They could easily tell this wasn't his normal brand of crazy.

"You understand me so well Zel-kun."

The chimera scoffed, "No I don't, and I really don't want to. I think a person would have to be insane to even begin to understand you Xelloss."

His giggling only intensified. "You're probably right."

Zelgadis raised his eyebrow in suspicion, "You alright?"

"Yeah, you're acting weirder than usual."

Xelloss had a smile plastered on his face that would put purple striped cats to shame. "Never better!"

"Ooo-kay"

"Well I'll see you later then." The priest gave his staff a few twirls and walked toward the door, apparently intent on leaving like a normal person for some reason.

He stopped mid-stride and turned back to them. "Oh and I know we're not seriously keeping score, but we can probably chalk this up as a point for me." His insane giggling started back up again and he left Lina's room, leaving the two of them too freaked out to be upset by his declaration of another victory.

"What the hell was that about?"

"I don't know." Lina crossed her arms and felt the stickiness of her skin. She was going to need to get cleaned up before she got dressed. "It's almost like he was high or drunk or something."

Zelgadis put his chin in hand thoughtfully, "You think it might have been because of us?"

Lina 'hmmd', "You know, it could be. We've never exactly had a chance to see what he's like after he's been around humans who've been pleasured."

She uncrossed her arms and winced as her skin was stuck together. "I seriously need to get cleaned up before I go anywhere. Thankfully this room has its own private bath."

Zelgadis blushed and looked at the floor, "Yeah, sorry about that."

Lina shot him a winning smile. "Hey, I'm not complaining." She suddenly remembered something, "Anyway, what did you come up here for to begin with anyway?"

"Oh yeah," He winced, "Lunch is ready."

She sighed, though not at all upset, "Well its cold by now." She moved over to where she had left her new dress and picked it up. "Do you mind waiting out here while I rinse off real quick? When I'm done we can go down to town and find a restaurant to have lunch." She smiled happily, "My treat."

He smiled back and nodded. "Alright." He went to pick up his belts as she disappeared behind the bathroom door.

* * *

><p>Xelloss walked halfway down the hall before he remembered there was no need for him to act like a human here.<p>

In accomplishing his mission to aid in the destruction of the ghost of the Demon Lord, he had inadvertently become one of the saviors of Taforashia. When he had been in the city a few weeks before, he had discovered that word had somehow manage to spread among the citizens about him and they didn't seem to really care that he was a Mazoku or the reasoning behind his actions. All that mattered to them was that he had been among those who helped to save them.

So he didn't think twice as he teleported away while out in the open.

When he reappeared, it was on the outskirts of Wolf Pack Island. He creased his brow in confusion and tried again, this time successfully appearing within his master's mansion.

Hopefully the archives would shed some light on why he was feeling so strange.

Reaching the library, he went straight to the books on Mazoku physiology and interaction with humans. Before he even had a chance to open the first book, Zelas appeared before him, lacking her customary cigarette in hand.

"Zelas-sama!" Xelloss had an overly delighted smile on his face, reminiscent of a small child talking to his favorite person. "How are you today?"

She raised her eyebrow and stared at him, "I'm fine, but obviously something is wrong with you. I could feel your chaotic presence from downstairs." She looked him over from head to toe and astrally as well, trying to figure out why he was acting so odd. "What's wrong with you?"

He smiled, his current state of mind making him unable to feel worried, "I don't know. I was hoping I would find something that might help me figure that out."

She leaned over close to him and studiously examined his face, carefully separating the eyelids of one of his eyes with her clawed fingers. His normally slitted pupil was dilated so far it was almost as round as a human's.

As soon as she had appeared before him she could smell the lasting aroma of a female and a male's post-orgasmic musk on him, but not his own. It was easy to figure out what the event was that had just happened but she asked anyway.

She pulled back away from him, "Did you just finish pleasuring your playthings?"

A very delighted smile split his face, "Yes."

"And you've only been feeling like this since then?"

He nodded. She continued to question him, "And the only effect is," She gestured to his psychotic looking smile, "this strange state of mind?"

"It would seem so."

She tapped her chin in thought. "I've never seen this before, so I don't know what it is. I'll send Xanas down to help you search through these old books for information." She crossed her arms and looked him over again. "I've got a hunch that these effects will wear off eventually. When they do, I want you to send a message for me."

There was a mischievous twinkle in his eye and his smile was still huge, but he managed to keep his words respectful. "The usual message to the usual recipient, Zelas-sama?"

"Yes, but not for the usual reason. I'm going to see if she happens to have any insight on this." She smirked at him, "And I'm sure she would be very interested to find out what you've been up to lately."

With his current lack of control over his emotions, he couldn't stop the look horror that crossed his face.

She laughed at his rare expression, "I may not know what's going on, but I just have this feeling that it's only going to get more fun from here."

* * *

><p>Back in Taforashia, Lina and Zelgadis had just finished eating at a quaint little café and were on their way back to the palace. When they passed by an apothecary, Lina excused herself, saying she needed to pick up a few things and she'd meet up with him later.<p>

Zelgadis shrugged and continued on. When he was almost to the palace he heard Pakota's voice call out to him. Looking around, trying to find where he was at, he finally looked up and saw the prince sitting high up in the branches of one of the overly huge trees, waving at him to come up.

Wondering what he wanted, the chimera leapt up into the tree and landed on one of the thick branches nearby the prince.

"I wish I could jump as high as you." Pakota gave him a thumbs up, "That's gotta come in handy."

Zelgadis just shrugged, "I suppose." He sat down on the branch, "Was there something you wanted?"

Pakota sat up from his lounged position on the tree branch, "Yeah, actually." He rubbed the back of his neck, "I should have asked this back before you guys left Taforashia last time…" His eyebrows creased, "But I was hoping you could give me some advice on being in a body not my own."

The chimera pondered his statement, "But you already have experience living in a body not your own."

Pakota shook his head, "No not like that. My stuffed body took a lot of getting used to but this time it's even more difficult." He looked down to examine his adult sized hands, "Duclis' body is normal, but it's not normal for me. In the past several years I went from a child's body, to a stuffed one that wasn't limited like normal bodies are, to a fully matured human one."

"Aside from getting used to not having nearly as much magical capacity as I used to, I'm having to adjust to things like actually being injured rather than just my fabric ripping, being way taller and physically stronger." He blushed and looked away, mumbling under his breath, "Not to mention the fact that I was placed in this adult body without the benefit of puberty to help me adjust."

Zelgadis couldn't hide the sudden smirk, fortunately, Pakota was still looking away. _'So that's what he really wants advice on.'_

He schooled his face again, "Well I can't really give you much advice on going from a stuffed body back to a human one, but I can tell you how I adjusted to my chimera body if you think it would help." He smiled reassuringly at Pakota when he looked back at him, "And if you have any other questions, I'd be happy to answer them."

He smiled back nervously, shoulders tense, "I guess what bugs me most is that… it just feels wrong when I…" He mumbled off, in a lower voice but Zelgadis could easily hear him anyway, "When I think about… stuff... or have dreams… it just feels wrong to have the reactions I do." He blushed really hard, still mumbling, "I mean this is Duclis' body."

"You shouldn't think like that Pakota. As sad as it is, Duclis died to help us defeat Shabranigdu's ghost. It's still unclear to me how you came to be in that body, but for all intents and purposes, it's yours now." He crossed his arms, sagely nodding, "I didn't really know Duclis all that well but I'm sure that he would have no problems about you treating his body as you would the one you were born into. So you shouldn't feel ashamed at any natural reactions you have."

Pakota looked up and nodded, feeling a little better. Maybe someday, he'd tell Zelgadis that it was because of Rezo that he was where he was now instead of obliterated along with his original body, the Red Priest and the Demon Lord. For now though, it was best to leave that unsaid.

They continued to talk for a good half hour about their unnatural forms before they saw the carriages Zelgadis and Lina had left behind earlier that morning pull up to the palace.

The chimera was about to jump down to greet them but was stopped by Pakota's questioning voice. "Oh, um, one more thing Zelgadis."

He turned back to look, "Yes?"

"I was just kinda wondering… are you and Amelia.. I mean have you ever…" He reached around for the right word, failing miserably, "I mean cus if you are I'll stay out of the picture." He smiled nervously.

Zelgadis somehow managed to decipher his babbling, "No, Amelia and I aren't and have never been a couple, and I would have no problems if you wanted to pursue her." He grinned, "In fact, I happen to have it on good authority from a certain empathetic Mazoku that she's lost interest in her crush on me and is more interested in you now."

Pakota's face reddened again and he mouthed a silent 'Oh'. Suddenly remembering something, he shook out of his embarrassment, "Speaking of Xelloss, a couple of maids saw him leaving Lina's rooms sometime around noon with a creepy smile on his face before he teleported away."

The chimera's eyes widened but he immediately went into damage control mode, "He was probably there making her mad or something. You know how he is."

The prince scratched his chin, "Yeah, I guess that's probably it."

* * *

><p>AN<p>

Hope you enjoyed my first ever lemony writing! More shall come in upcoming chapters!

What's up with Xelloss? Hilarity shall ensue! Like every society, I'm sure there are drugs in the Slayers world, hallucinogenic mushroom or something like that. So Lina and Zel know the typical behavior of someone who's high, and just to keep it simple so as not to get into confusing explanations and tangents, that's why I just had them use the word 'high' when they were talking about Xelloss' weird behavior.

I give astral plane hugs with every review! :D


	6. Midnight Snacks

AN

This chapter makes up for Pakota's seemingly out of character conversation with Zelgadis in the last chapter. He's back to his usual snarky little-brother-character self again here lol

Yes… there's going to be lots more happening after the ball… this plot is writing itself at this point ^_^;; ….. and yes... there is an actual plot XD

Disclaimer: I don't own Slayer. If I did, anime Duclis would look like manga Duclis.

* * *

><p>After Pakota and Zelgadis greeted the new arrivals the prince showed them to their rooms in the guest wing. Amelia, Prince Phil and Gourry had all been assigned private rooms like Lina and Zelgadis, but Sylphiel would be sharing a servant's room with the rest of the women in Phil's entourage.<p>

Amelia wasn't happy about that and offered to share her room with the priestess, saying that the king-size bed would fit them both comfortably.

The princess clasped her hands together, looking happy, "It'll be just like a sleepover! You should stay in my room with us too Lina-san. We'll do makeovers and have popcorn and play cards. It'll be so much fun!"

Lina had come back from her shopping just in time to get stuck with helping to carry the suitcases in. She would have stayed out a little longer if she had known they had arrived and would make her carry her own luggage. What good were footmen if they didn't carry all your stuff for you?

Currently, they were in the drawing room of the guest wing. Prince Phil and the rest of his staff were elsewhere.

The red head gave her a look, "I don't know what would suddenly make this a 'sleepover'. We end up sharing rooms at inns all the time." She crossed her arms, "You can do whatever you want but I want to take advantage of having such a nice huge room all to myself."

Amelia began to pout before Sylphiel put a hand on her shoulder, "It's alright Amelia-san, you and I can still have a sleepover." She smiled happily, "Maybe you can help me decide what hairstyle I should wear with my gown for the ball."

The princess turned happy once again, "I'd love to!"

Lina turned away from them to better block out Amelia's gushing over makeovers and hairstyles with an annoyed look on her face.

Unfortunately, that meant she had to turn toward Pakota's general direction who was sitting next to her, Gourry, and Zelgadis.

"I think a makeover would be good for you." He grinned, "You still need to do something about that ugly face."

Lina's eyes turned angry and she grabbed a lock of his shoulder length hair and yanked it so his ear would be close to her mouth while she yelled, "Ugly? How dare you still call the beautiful Lina Inverse _ugly_! I would have thought that now that you're back to prince duties you'd have more manners."

Pakota tried to yank his hair out of her grasp but she had a death grip on it, "I only say it cus it's true. Besides, there's no one in the room who I need to impress with good manners."

Lina's face took on an evil smile and she spoke in a lower voice so that Amelia, who was on the other side of the room chatting with Sylphiel, wouldn't hear, "Is that so? Are you sure there isn't a certain princess who you think you may want to behave in front of?"

The prince blushed. His voice was low when he angrily responded. "She's heard me call you ugly before." He smirked, "I bet she thinks you're ugly too. She seemed pretty eager to give you a makeover."

The fiery red head reached up and grabbed more of his hair with her other hand, getting angrier, "You're the only one on the planet with that opinion you little rat. I suggest you grow up. No woman wants a guy with the mentality of a ten year old." She shoved his head away from her and crossed her arms angrily.

Pakota rubbed his scalp, "Well no guy would ever want a tomboy barbarian woman like you."

"I'll have you know, there's plenty of guys who only wish they could get with me." She smirked smugly, "Most of them are just weaklings who couldn't possibly stand up to my awesome power."

Up to this point, Zelgadis and Gourry had been watching the bickering in silence. The chimera rolled his eyes. At least Lina's confidence and arrogance was in full swing again. It was a far cry from that day in the forest when they had their first kiss.

He sighed in annoyance and was about to break up the squabbling when Gourry beat him to it. "Hey guys, can't you just get along. You fight like you're brother and sister or something."

Both Lina and Pakota turned to glare at him and yelled at him simultaneously, "No we don't!"

Gourry put his hands up in front of him, as if it would save him from their wrath.

Thankfully for the swordsman, a maid entered the room to tell them that dinner was served downstairs, effectively distracting the duo.

Prince Phil and the king were already in the dining hall when they arrived. They had apparently been discussing something and ended their conversations when they spotted them.

As everyone was seated, the king made a standing declaration from the head of the table. "I am very pleased that you all could be here to attend Posel's re-crowning ceremony the day after tomorrow. It means much to me that the friends and allies my son has made while protecting our sleeping country are here to witness this important event for him."

Pakota made a face at Lina, out of his father's line of sight, as if to say 'but I could care less if you were here.'

The king looked around the table searchingly, "Wasn't there a Mazoku fellow that had a hand saving our country from the Dark Lord? I had heard he was here." He drifted off wonderingly, "I had hoped to give him my thanks along with you."

"Oh you mean Xelloss?" Lina smiled nervously, "He comes and goes whenever he wants. He made it seem like he planned to be here for the ball… but I wouldn't thank him for his part in destroying the Ghost of Shabrinigdu if I were you. I'm pretty sure he wouldn't want to be thanked for something like destroying their supreme leader; mindless ghost or not."

The king placed a hand on his chin, "I suppose you are right." He thought for a moment then nodded to himself, "Well in any case, no matter what his reasons were, and how he feels about what he has done, I am grateful. As you know, all the upcoming festivities are open to the public, but even if they were invitation only, I would personally request his presence right along with all of you." He smiled at them regally.

Lina smirked, "I'm sure he'd be… interested to find out you think so highly of him."

Next to her, Zelgadis made a noise that sounded like he was trying to hide a snicker.

They had the same thought, _'__Interested to know there's yet another member of royalty he'll be able to manipulate so easily.'_

The old king picked up his wine glass in a toast, "To Posel and the saviors of Taforashia."

* * *

><p>Dinner at the royal table had gone by relatively smoothly. With her hunger cut in half since she'd begun wearing the necklace Xelloss gave her, Lina didn't have much of a need to eat as ravenously as before. Gourry had also been sure to mind his manners in front of the Taforashian king and for once, the meal passed without their comrades being ashamed that they knew them.<p>

Much later that evening, Lina and Zelgadis once again found themselves seated across a chess set from each other in the otherwise empty drawing room of the guest wing. It seemed like the game was slowly becoming the theme of their lives.

Lina had her chin in her hand. Picking up one of her knights, she moved it to take out one of Zel's bishops. "So… today was pretty interesting." Her face heated up at the memories of that afternoon.

The chimera's face turned pink as well and he nodded, moving his other bishop to take out her rook that had been previously blocked by her knight.

"It was a bit of a surprise. I kind of thought he'd wait a while longer." She rubbed her chin thoughtfully, "He's always so damned patient."

Zelgadis sighed and picked up his evening coffee and stared into the contents. "I kind of expected him to do something like that." He swirled the liquid around in his cup, "Suddenly showing up out of nowhere and instigating events like that." A small smirk cracked his face, "But perhaps we may have helped that event occur."

The sorceress moved one of her pawn's out of the way of her more powerful pieces, "Why do you say that?"

"I get the feeling, that maybe he was a little more upset at losing that bet than he let on." He moved his queen to a safe place away from Lina's queen with the hand that wasn't holding his coffee mug. "I think he may have actually been a bit eager for things to cross that line."

She smirked, "Well if that's true then I guess we could say we had the upper hand. Even if was subtle."

"True." Zelgadis nodded and finally sipped his coffee. The taste made him suddenly remember something. "By the way, what exactly were you up to before I showed up? I tasted something strange when Xelloss…" He looked away from her slightly, "kissed me." He looked thoughtful, "The only way I could describe it was it tasted like dark magic, like when it's so heavily used that it thickens the air."

A wicked smirk broke out across Lina's face as she had another of her pieces in hand to move, "I bit his tongue." She laughed. "He was pretty surprised."

She set the piece down in its new place, "It was kind of strange though. I didn't think Mazoku bled. Not only that but it was black," she looked thoughtful, "And like you said, it tasted like dark magic."

Zelgadis' eyebrows rose at that bit of information as he set his cup back down. "I didn't know that either." Then suddenly, his eyes drooped and became slightly hazy as his demon aspect processed that he had tasted Mazoku blood. There was something unsettling and yet somehow erotic about that.

Lina saw the look on his face and snapped her fingers to get his attention, "Hey. You okay there?"

He shook himself out of his haze, "Yeah, I'm fine."

Zelgadis looked back down at the board and grinned. He moved a rook and told her "Checkmate."

She scowled at him, "Where?"

He pointed out how his rook had a clear shot of her king and the only space she could move it to would make it so it would be taken by his queen. "Damn it. I always lose against you."

He continued to smirk, "That's because you don't plan far enough ahead."

Lina's frown turned into an impish smirk instantly, "I bet if you played against Xelloss he'd beat you in twenty moves or less."

Zelgadis scowled at her but didn't try to argue that statement.

The red head stood up and stretched. "I think I want a snack. Wanna come with me?"

"Sure." The chimera rose as well, taking his coffee mug with him. It was mostly empty anyway and while he was with her in the kitchens he could put it with the other dirty dishes.

"I really hope they have some chocolate cake or something." She said as she walked out of the drawing room, Zelgadis close behind.

He smirked widely, "You've got a craving for chocolate do you?"

Lina continued to walk, "Yeah, it's the weirdest thing. I don't normally crave stuff."

Zelgadis couldn't control the snort and soft chuckle that came out.

She turned her head to look at him, "What's so funny?"

There was no one else around the halls, so he thought it safe to tell her, "Chocolate is thought to have a very mild aphrodisiac quality and quite often, women will crave chocolate when they want sex."

His grin grew when she blushed darkly and she turned around to continue walking down the halls. "Oh."

When Lina and Zelgadis reached the kitchens, there were a couple of servants there cleaning and preparing for the next day.

When Lina asked, the maid told her, "I'm sorry, but Princess Amelia and her priestess companion left with the last few slices of chocolate cake that we had about an hour ago."

The younger of the two, who seemed to be a chef's apprentice of about twelve years old, spoke up happily, "I just made some chocolate chip cookies though!" She chimed happily, "They're still a little warm but please have some."

Lina looked at the young girl quizzically, "Why are you baking cookies in the middle of the night?"

The youth looked a bit nervous, "Um, Chef says I need a lot more practice."

The maid smirked wickedly at the younger; they could have been sisters. "That's because a few days ago when you made cookies, you read the ingredients wrong and put in a cup of salt instead of a cup of sugar."

Lina and Zelgadis had varied expressions of ill dread and horror. The girl quickly shot back at the maid, "It was a one time mistake! I was really tired that day and I haven't made any mistakes like that since." Looking back at the other two, she pleaded, "Please try at least one. I promise they taste good. I've already tried one myself."

They both winced and reluctantly agreed. They couldn't resist a heartfelt plea like that from a kid.

The girl took two cookies off of the cooling rack and placed them on a plate and held it between them. They each took one and despite the girl's assurances, they prepared themselves for a salty cookie and were pleasantly surprised.

"Hey this is pretty good." Lina continued to eat the rest of the cookie without fear and Zelgadis nodded his approval as well.

The girl beamed, "Thanks." She turned around and piled more cookies on the plate. "Here, have some more." She handed the plate to Lina and smiled happily at her.

The maid laughed at the young girl and asked Lina, "Would you both like some milk as well?"

Lina agreed but Zelgadis declined, "I wouldn't mind some tea though, if it's not too much trouble."

The young girl happily shook her head, "It's no trouble. I'll make some right away." Lina and Zelgadis were clearly her new favorite people. She saw the dirty coffee mug he was still holding, "I can take that for you too."

The young girl took his mug and scurried off to add it to the dirty dishes and make tea, leaving the maid behind to laugh lightly, "Watch out for Mirana." She told Zelgadis, "She develops crushes like that." She snapped her fingers.

The chimera blushed and Lina grinned cheekily and rubbed her elbow into his side lightly, "Be careful Zel. You could get a whole army of admirers if you're not careful."

He scoffed at her, "I highly doubt that."

The maid started giggling, "Actually, that's already happened. Since you and your friends saved Taforashia, there's been a slew of admirers in the city; everything from people training to be like you to fan clubs."

She continued to giggle at Lina and Zel's shocked looks, "Fan clubs?"

"Yes. There's a fan club for each of you. Lina-san, Zelgadis-san, Gourry-san, Xelloss-san, Princess Amelia and unsurprisingly, the largest club is for our own Prince Posel. The members range in age from five years old to fourty, though most are teenagers."

Lina and Zelgadis couldn't seem to wipe the looks off their faces. Zel seemed most shocked of all. "Admirers? That's… new."

The maid nodded happily, "Yes, in fact your fan club is quite large, Zelgadis-san. It seems many find you to be…" She looked up thoughtfully, searching for the right word, "exotic."

Zelgadis' mouth hung open, speechless. Lina was quick to grin mischievously and lightly rub her elbow into his side again. "How about that, Zel? Sounds like you might just have to beat girls off with a stick when we're around Taforashia."

Zelgadis' face grew redder and the maid happily added, "Oh there's plenty more than just female admirers."

Lina's face split in half and the chimera's blush darkened even more. "What do you know? You could have your pick of whoever you wanted around here."

"Shut up." Zel's mumbled, highly embarrassed.

The sorceress turned back to the maid, grinning, "So who's club do you belong to?"

"Me?" The maid seemed surprised that she would ask, "Well, actually, I wish I could be like you Lina-san. Though I only have very minor magic skills." She looked a little downcast.

Lina smiled brightly at her, "Practice makes perfect." Her grin turned smug, "After all, it's pretty rare to be a sorcery genius like the beautiful Lina Inverse."

Zelgadis' embarrassment had worn off, "If you keep talking so smug and high and mighty all the time you're going to lose your followers quick."

Lina scowled at him and the maid smiled happily, "On the contrary, everyone already knows about her legendary confidence and that's a part of her appeal."

The red head's grin returned, "See Zel? It all works out."

The chimera just rolled his eyes, "What she meant to say was 'arrogance', not 'confidence'."

Lina smirked smugly at him, "I can be both."

Mirana finally returned with a tea set, complete with a full assortment of teas, cream, sugar, and honey, a glass of milk and a boiling kettle of water and placed the tray on the counter in front of them. "Here you are." She beamed happily up at Zelgadis.

He thanked her and picked the glass of milk off the tray and handed it to Lina, telling her she could carry her own drink. She stuck her tongue out at him but took it anyway.

Now with the glass of milk in one hand and the plate of cookies in the other, Lina thanked the two and turned to leave before stopping and turning back to the maid. "Oh, we didn't catch your name."

"Oh. My apologies." The maid curtsied, "I am Melissa and Mirana here is my younger sister."

Lina nodded to them, "It was good talking to you. Thanks for the cookies." She smiled at the young cook, "We'll probably be seeing you guys around."

Mirana happily waved at them as Lina and Zelgadis left the kitchen.

Walking back upstairs to the guest wing, the chimera carried his tea tray while the sorceress was trying to mouth a cookie off her plate with both of her hands full.

When they were about to reach the drawing room again, Lina gave up on trying to get the cookie. Looking around the hallway quickly she ask Zelgadis quietly, "Um, actually, do you wanna have our snacks in the sitting area of my room?"

Zelgadis turned back to look at her for a moment and nodded.

Lina smiled cutely and walked on down the hall to her room. When they reached her door, she frowned at the knob and tried to turn it with the side of her wrist, hands too full to open it.

The chimera rolled his eyes but smiled in humor and walked a little further down the hall to where a small end table was and set his tea tray down on it. He came back, opened the door for her, to which she made a face at him and walked in. He then went back for his tray and followed her into her room, shutting the door behind him with his foot.

She was already sitting on her lounge sofa with her plate and glass on the coffee table before her. Free to use her hands again, she was happily munching on a cookie. The one she previously slobbered all over while trying to get it into her mouth was sitting on the farthest side of her plate, away from the others.

Zelgadis set the tea tray down on the coffee table next to the cookies and sat beside her on the sofa and began to sort through the tea choices. Chamomile sounded best this time of night.

"Do you want some too Lina?" He began to make his tea in one of the cups available. "Mirana gave us two cups."

Lina just finished inhaling another cookie, "Sure, why not?" She leaned over to examine the tea selection and picked out a peppermint mix and set to making her drink.

While their tea steeped, Lina offered him the cookie plate, "If you want any, you better grab them now before I eat them all."

He shook his head, "One was plenty. I'm not very big on sweets."

She shrugged and put the plate back down, taking another cookie away to be eaten whole, followed by a swig of milk.

Lina leaned back into the sofa, "Hey Zel?"

"Hmm?"

"If what Melissa said is right, you could pretty much have the pick of whoever you wanted around here." She swung her legs back and forth slowly to distract herself. "Knowing that… do you think you might want to stay here?" She stared out straight ahead of her, "Maybe find some cute thing to settle down with?"

Zelgadis leaned back as well and stared up at the ceiling, thinking hard about her question. "Knowing there are admirers out there is nice… but none of them could possibly understand me." He turned to look down at Lina, "We've been through a lot together, our little group," He smiled at her, "And I really couldn't imagine some 'cute thing' ever being able to understand me better than those I've fought alongside."

Lina seemed pretty pleased with his answer and leaned to rest her head against his shoulder, "I'm glad it sounds like you want to stick with us a while longer."

The chimera lightly blushed at her closeness but reached up to wrap an arm around her. "Besides all that, it never gets boring with you around." He smirked.

She wiggled a little bit closer, feeling fairly comfortable in his half embrace and laughed, "Even more so with Xelloss."

Zelgadis groaned, "No kidding."

Lina's giggling was interrupted by some other kind of groaning. She stopped laughing to try and figure it out. When she was just about to ask Zelgadis if he heard it too, they heard a loud _snap_.

Accompanied by a very loud _crash_, they suddenly found themselves a lot closer to the floor, and Lina haphazardly thrown onto Zelgadis' lap.

They managed to untangle themselves and move away from the demolished furniture, now able to clearly see that one of the legs had broken clean in half.

Lina elbowed him in the side as hard as she could without seriously hurting herself, "Really Zel! How much _do_ you weigh?" It was quickly becoming a question she really wanted an answer to.

He frowned at her and opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by a knock on Lina's door. "Lina-san! Is everything alright?"

Lina and Zelgadis' eyes widened as they heard Amelia's voice. Lina started shoving him and hissed, "Hide!"

Being caught in Lina's room was embarrassing but he didn't see why he needed to hide. He whispered harshly back, "Why? It's not like we were up to anything. We were only having tea."

"Yeah, tea in my room at like, one o'clock in the morning." She shoved him towards the bathroom door. "She might find that a little odd, don't you think?"

He thought about it a second and was about to agree with her when Amelia's questioning voice floated through the door again. "Lina-san?"

The sorceress quickly shoved him into the bathroom and shut the door behind her, completely oblivious to the sudden splash and muffled cursing, "Just a minute Amelia."

Running over to the door, Lina opened it quickly to find Amelia and Sylphiel standing there in their pajamas holding some dirty dishes.

"Is everything alright Lina-san?" Amelia asked, trying to look past Lina through the door, "We were on our way down to the kitchen when we heard a really loud crash."

Lina moved to block Amelia's sight, not wanting her to see the tea set out for two on the coffee table. "Everything's fine. I was just sitting on the sofa and it suddenly broke is all." She laughed nervously, "It seems pretty old. It's got to be one from before Taforashia was sealed. It probably had termites or wood rot or something like that."

Amelia seemed satisfied. It was likely that there was a shred of truth to it anyway, "Well are you hurt at all?"

The sorceress shook her head, "Just a sore butt. I'll be fine after some sleep. I was just about to get changed for bed anyway."

The princess nodded, "Well alright then, goodnight."

Sylphiel smiled at the red head, "Goodnight Lina-san."

"G'night guys." Lina told them and watched them walk down the hall a ways before she shut the door, locked it, and turned around to lean on it with a sigh.

She quickly went back to the bathroom and opened the door, "Ok, they're go-"

She burst out in laughter at the sight of a very disgruntled Zelgadis looking distinctly like a drowned rat in his clothes.

"What happened?" She managed to snort out.

He was standing in the middle of the bathroom, trying to wring out his clothing into the large tub that was built into the floor. Fortunately, he had left his sword in his room so he didn't need to worry about it rusting or getting water out of the scabbard.

He gave her an exhausted look, "When you pushed me in here, I tripped and landed in the bathtub that _somebody_ forgot to drain."

She continued to snort and laugh.

"It's not funny." He took off his cloak to better wring it out.

"Only for you." Her laughing subsided but she made no effort to wipe the huge grin off her face. Going over to the linen cabinet she pulled out several towels and handed them to him. "Here."

He accepted them and tried drying out his clothes for a few minutes before sighing, "I'm not going to be able to get these dry enough to walk back to my room without leaving water everywhere." He rolled his head in thought for a moment, "I could use a wind spell to dry off, but indoors that'll be more trouble than it's worth."

After a few more moments of thought he seemed to come to a decision, "I'm going to have to take these off." He looked over to the girl with a bit of pink on his cheeks, "Lina, could you go over to my room and grab my sleepwear?"

The smirk was wiped off Lina's face and she nodded numbly, "Um, sure thing. I'll be right back." Zelgadis gave her his thanks as she left the bathroom.

Opening the door to the hallway, she stuck her head out, on the lookout for Amelia and Sylphiel. No one was anywhere to be seen, so she quickly left her room, shutting the door behind her and briskly walked down the hall for where the guys' rooms were.

She came to the room she was pretty sure was Zelgadis'. She opened the door just enough to poke her head inside, just in case it turned out to be someone else's.

She was really glad she had tried to be cautious because inside the room was Prince Philionel practicing outlandish justice speeches in his underwear. Thankfully his attention was focused completely on his reflection in the full length mirror, so he never saw her poke her head in or her look of absolute and utter horror before quickly yanking her head back out of the crack in the door.

She had to seriously reign in the instinct to slam the door shut to put as much as possible between her and the half-naked oversized dwarf prince. After a few mind melting seconds she was finally able to control herself enough to quietly shut the door.

Making a silent mad dash down the hall, Lina came to the next door. _'This one has to be Zel's'_ Immediately after thinking that, she wasn't so sure. She was certain the last one was Zelgadis' room and that didn't go so well.

So once again she silently opened the door just enough to stick her head in. This time with her eyes tightly shut.

She could tell past her eyelids that the room was completely dark, so she cautiously opened an eye.

There were no signs of movement indicating that anyone was there. So she quietly crept into the room, looking toward the bed to make sure she hadn't made a mistake again and the occupant was just asleep.

Lina nearly blacked out when she found out that she did in fact make another mistake. She was in Gourry's room and apparently the swordsman thought it was a warm enough night to warrant sleeping in the nude.

He'd been sleeping on his stomach on top of the covers with his hair tied up to keep it off his back. So she was afforded a completely unobstructed view of his backside.

As soon as her head stopped swimming she left the room as fast and as soundlessly as she could.

She took a few deep breaths, trying to get the vision of what she was essentially giving up out of her mind. Gourry sure had a great body. Syphiel would no doubt be pleased for years to come.

After a few moments, she stood up straight and marched down the hallway. There was only one possible room left that could be Zelgadis'… but just in case, she was fairly cautious when she opened the door.

Looking around the room in the dark, she was able to clarify that no one was there. Casting a Lighting spell she searched the room, quickly finding Zelgadis' sleepwear laid out on his bed.

She snatched them up quickly and left but forgot to check out in the hallway before she exited the room. Now that she was out in the hall she could clearly hear the sound of Amelia and Sylphiel chatting as they were coming back from the kitchen and were about to round the corner.

Lina quickly went back to Zelgadis' door, angry to find out that she had accidentally locked it in her rush to get back to her room.

There was no time to chant an Unlock spell and no place else to hide before Amelia and Syphiel would see her. She quickly hid his pajamas up her dress and held them in place between her thighs, standing up straight just in time for Amelia and Sylphiel to come around the corner and see her.

They each held a glass of milk and looked at her surprised. "Lina-san! What are you doing? I thought you were going to change and go to bed?"

Lina smiled nervously at them and saw an opportunity, "I actually had the same idea as you guys and wanted to get a glass of milk first."

Amelia looked confused, "But Mirana-san said you and Zelgadis-san were already down there and you had gotten milk and cookies then."

'_Crap' _"Um… I did… There was a lot of cookies. I ran out of milk and I'm still thirsty." That sounded like a terrible excuse even to her own ears.

"Oh, ok." The completely trusting princess smiled, "Did Zelgadis-san go back to the drawing room when you came back up?"

Lina's eyebrow twitched nervously, "Uh no, I'm pretty sure he took his tea with him to his room like I did with my cookies." She took a gamble and added, "And since this is his room here and he hasn't come out to yell at us yet he's probably fast asleep already."

It looked like her gambit worked and she had successfully convinced them that she had just happened to be walking down the halls and hadn't just come out of Zelgadis' room.

Amelia and Syphiel nodded silently, "We better leave then," The princess said quietly, "See you tomorrow."

Fortunately, they went ahead and walked passed Lina, so they didn't see her hobble around the corner trying to keep Zel's pajamas from falling out of their hiding place.

She leaned up against the wall with a sigh. The whole, entire day would be something she would never forget as long as she lived.

A crazy race in the morning, her first sexual experiences in the afternoon and comical accidents in the evening; it had definitely been a full day.

Lina pulled out the sleepwear from its hiding place and waited several minutes. She peered around the corner and down the hallway of the guest wing. There was absolutely no one in sight and she couldn't hear anything either.

She made her way down the hall as fast as she could without breaking into a run. When she reached for the doorknob of her room she almost screamed in frustration when she found it locked.

Lina let her head fall on the door, making a low banging sound. Of course she'd gone and forgot to unlock the spring lock when she'd left.

Thankfully, it seemed as though Zelgadis had been waiting for her. The door was opened and she was quickly pulled inside.

She was greeted by a blushing, still wet Zelgadis who was dressed only in a towel. "What took so long?"

Lina's face got red again and she thought she really might faint this time. Somehow managing to create the phonemes necessary for speech, she told him, "Ask me about it some other day," as she handed him the pajamas that had caused so much trouble.

He raised an eyebrow but didn't question her as he accepted the clothing with the hand that wasn't holding up his towel.

Zelgadis headed back to the bathroom again to change when Lina stopped him, "Hey, Zel." He turned back slightly to look at her, "Do you think maybe…" She blushed, "I could convince you to leave your shirt off?"

After a moment he nodded softly and went into the bathroom to change into his sleep pants.

Lina had seen him shirtless on plenty of occasions, but now it was different. Now she could look at his exposed chest without having to steal glances to do it and even touch his stony skin.

She was interrupted from a brief daydream when Zelgadis left the bathroom and afforded her with the real-life image in her mind.

He was wearing the dark forest green sleep pants and holding the shirt in his hand with the towel draped around his neck.

Lina smiled at him, pleased, "Let's drink our tea if it isn't already cold."

Zelgadis nodded and followed her back to the sitting area and destroyed sofa. "I think I'll just go ahead and sit on the floor this time."

He put his shirt on the coffee table, picked up the tea cup he had prepared for himself earlier and sat down on the floor. Luckily it was still warm, though not as much as he would have preferred.

Picking up her own tea cup Lina sat down beside him and they drank in a companionable silence.

Several minutes ticked by when an idea suddenly popped into Lina's head and she shattered the quiet with a question that was completely out of the blue, "So what do you think Pakota and Amelia's kids'll look like?"

Zelgadis coughed desperately trying to get the tea out of his lungs. "_Coughcough__-W_hat?-_cough__"_

Lina had such a smugly mischievous smirk on her face. "I bet they'll have Amelia's big bright blue eyes and have her habit of being in high places and Pakota's bad attitude."

The chimera finally stopped coughing, "I think that's several years off yet."

The red head smirked, "Yeah but it's fun to think about it. We could dream up some hellish trouble makers." She laughed.

Zelgadis chuckled too, "If we're talking about offspring of Amelia and Pakota, then they'd have to be." He grinned and sipped his tea, "What about Gourry and Sylphiel?"

Lina snorted into her drink, "They'll have the dopiest, doe-eyed, do-gooding, mild mannered kids on the planet."

He grinned in amusement and nodded, "Most likely."

Lina blushed darkly, "So… hypothetically… if we were talking from the perspective of our friends… what kind of kids do you think would come from us?" Her blush darkened even more with the completion of her sentence, immediately wishing she hadn't asked.

Zelgadis nearly shattered the cup in his hand with as harsh as he flinched and blushed madly, "Uh… I don't know." His brain was suffering an emergency shutdown mode.

She snickered lightly at the look on his face. Still blushing she looked away and stared off in wandering thought. "I wonder… do you think any children you have would inherit your current chimera biology or is your passable traits limited to the genetics you were born with?"

As she finished her sentence, he could clearly tell that it had suddenly become an intriguing scientific question to her and more than just an idea of passing fancy.

He raised his eyebrow and thought hard on the question for a moment, "I honestly have no idea. Theoretically, you should only be able to pass on the genetics you were born with, so things that happen to the body shouldn't affect any offspring. However, I'm really not sure just how deeply Rezo altered my body. He could have changed my genetics as well."

Lina looked contemplative for a while but she was eventually interrupted in her thoughts by Zelgadis. "It's a very interesting question, but it's not exactly something I want to find out anytime soon." He mumbled shyly.

The sorceress's blush returned full force and she smiled nervously, "Ah, well… you don't have to worry about that with me when we… uh… get around to…stuff" Her face was beat red.

Apparently, all that confidence without getting embarrassed about sex that Lina had built up over the past few days was suddenly torn to shreds by a conversation about kids.

Zelgadis was about to ask her what she meant when she continued to press on in her fractured, embarrassed speech, "So, uh… with Xelloss just popping in today I thought it would be best to be prepared…in case… things go farther next time... So when I went shopping at the apothecary… I bought some herbal remedies to prevent… getting pregnant."

She let out a small relieved whine, having gotten the most humiliating information out, she added in a much more normal voice, "And that damn shopkeeper didn't make buying them any less embarrassing." She scowled at the floor, as if seeing a vision of her offender.

"Well…It's good to know you've taken precautions." Zelgadis smiled at her nervously.

The air was tense as they sat in an incredibly awkward silence for a few moments, the quiet only broken by the occasional sound of tea being sipped.

Unable to bare the tension anymore Lina was desperate to start a new topic. Grasping for anything, she came up with, "So you plan on coming with us to the festival in town tomorrow?"

Zelgadis was just as eager to move onto a new topic as she was and jumped at the opening right away, "The one with the carnival games and food? Between all of you guys I don't think I'd have a choice in the matter anyway." He smirked a little.

Lina grinned, "Damn right. I'll strong arm you into coming if I have to." Her usual mood was quickly returning and she added with a mischievous glint in her eye, "And I just _have_ to make you visit the 'Guess Your Weight' booth."

The chimera frowned at her, "What makes you think there'll even be one?"

She snorted, "There's always one of those at these sorts of festivals."

He rolled his eyes but suddenly got a devilish smirk on his face as an idea struck him. "I'll go to the 'Guess Your Weight' booth if you go to the 'Guess Your Age' booth."

She grimaced, "I don't want to, everybody always thinks I'm a damn kid, even those stupid age guessers."

Zelgadis grinned, victorious, "Then I guess neither of us will go to those places."

Lina eyed him and broke out in a smirk, "Touché Zel. Well played."

The chimera grinned and finished off his tea. "I think we should get some sleep. The next few days are going to be busy."

Zelgadis stood up and began piling all the dirty dishes on the tray, intent on taking them back down to the kitchen.

Lina stood up as well and when the chimera reached for his pajama shirt she stopped him. "Just… hang on a minute."

She came up to him, pink dusting her cheeks as she lightly put both of her hands on his chest, enjoying the feel for a few moments before reaching up on her toes to kiss Zelgadis gently.

Zelgadis' eyebrows rose in surprise but he quickly let it slide off and embraced her in his arms and bent down slightly to better return her kiss. It was tender and caring, as if to reinforce that their good-natured ribbing was harmless fun, and that they truly had affection for each other even if it was only recently realized.

When they broke apart, they shared a kind smile full of caring before Lina cracked a grin and it was back to the status quo. "Make sure you don't break your bed when you go to sleep tonight."

He frowned at her, but suddenly got a wild impulse and he smirked, "I'll leave breaking beds for later."

Lina's eyes went wide and she started laughing, "Did you just make a dirty joke?"

Zelgadis' smirked widened, "I guess I did."

The red head's laughter increased. "That was unexpected." She laughed some more, "That was a good one too. Xelloss would be proud."

The chimera had removed the towel around his neck and put on his shirt while she was busy laughing. "He'd probably be surprised I had a sense of humor."

Zelgadis threw the towel over his shoulder again as Lina laughed harder, "Probably."

The chimera went into the bathroom to collect his wet clothing. When he removed them he'd managed to wring them out much better and now they had dried enough to not drip water everywhere. He took the towel from around his neck and bundled his wet clothing up in it. It was just barely big enough to fit all the clothing in it and be tied off.

Slipping an arm through the loop of the tied towel, Zelgadis walked back out into Lina's room and picked up the tea tray with both hands.

Lina raised an eyebrow, "I can help carry something if you want."

He shook his head, "I've got it."

They both walked casually toward the door and Lina opened it for him when they reached it. She looked around quickly to make sure no one was around before stepping out into the hall.

Zelgadis stopped in front of her, "Well, goodnight then."

Lina smiled up at him and reached up to kiss him on the cheek. "Goodnight."

She went back into her room and closed the door, leaving Zelgadis to walk down the hallway.

He planned on stopping by his room to throw the wet cloths in his bathroom before taking the dirty dishes down to the kitchen.

Zelgadis set down the tray on a nearby table in the hall and was highly annoyed to find the door to his room locked.

* * *

><p>AN<p>

I hope you liked the fluffy Zel/Lina. I tried really hard to make sure they kept their usual banter up so they wouldn't seem too terribly out of character. I hope you think it's alright. Some of the snarky comments kept a smirk on my face while I was writing.

I know there was no Xelloss this chapter ;_; he's busy right now.

I really wish I could have broken up the whole Lina/Zel huge section, but there really was nothing I could cut to. Xelloss is busy being mysterious and if I cut to Amelia and Sylphiel it would have ruined the surprise of them popping up at bad times.

Sorry for the invasion of the OC sisters. I promise all the OC's in this story are little more than glorified talking plot devices.

Please review! Mirana will make you salt-free cookies LOL


	7. Carnival Games

AN

Oh the last chapter was filled with so much awkward. I thought I would facepalm the entire time I was writing it. Poor Lina and Zel- I will continue to humiliate them- er… I mean… They will continue to have filler moments between the lemons. Wait... that's not it either. I will continue to make them have romantic fluff. There we go! LOL

By the way, I have no idea was currency is worth in Lina's world, so for this story, let's say that one silver piece is equal to one U.S. Dollar and one gold piece is equal to a hundred.

Disclaimer: If I owned Slayers, there would be a lot more seasons of the anime.

* * *

><p>The first thing Zelgadis realized when he awoke was that something wasn't right.<p>

Coming more into his senses, he found that he was held into a standing position by restraints on his wrists that were fastened to the wall somewhere above and behind his head. Groggily, he tried to break free of them but they held fast.

Aside from being chained to the wall, he didn't feel quite right. Looking down at himself he realized that he was only wearing his pants and he was dripping wet from head to toe. It was as if he'd taken another plunge in Lina's tub.

Speaking of which, he saw that he was in one of the bathrooms of the guest wing rooms. It could have been his own or Lina's, he didn't know, they all looked identical.

Through all of this he remained disturbingly docile and completely unconcerned. Ordinarily, this would have tipped him off immediately as to what was really going on around him, but he was momentarily distracted by movement nearby.

Xelloss seemed to walk straight out of the shadows of the dim room. Aside from the method of entry being other than his customary way of appearing, the demon's clothing was slightly different as well. He was lacking his cloak, gloves, bag and staff and his usual baggy clothing seemed to have gotten a whole lot smaller.

His shirt now hugged his body, showing off the lithe contours of his frame. It was also now lacking the usual extra fabric that fell around his waist, allowing Zelgadis an unobstructed view of how his newly snug pants showed off his slim hips and firm rear end. Not to mention the view from the front giving the chimera a better idea of what Xelloss kept hidden beneath.

The demon walked up to him with his eyes open, practically purring, "My, my Zelgadis. How is it that you've come to find yourself in such a compromising position?" He stopped a few scant inches away from the chimera and traced a clawed nail along his jaw line.

A lusciously wicked grin crossed the demon's face, "Well, since I've had the good fortune to find you this way, it would be inexcusable if I didn't take advantage of the situation." His moving fingers lightly held Zelgadis' chin and the demon ran his clawed thumbnail over his lips before moving in closer to the youth. "Wouldn't it?"

Xelloss closed the remaining distance between them to kiss the other man passionately. Zelgadis didn't try in the least to fight back or protest. In fact, he returned the Mazoku's kiss enthusiastically and moaned in pleasure as Xelloss' other hand began trailing down his side.

The hand that had been on his face moved to Zelgadis' other side as they continued to kiss. The light caresses of his nails becoming steadily rougher as Xelloss increased the pressure into the chimera's sides and the soft touches slowly turned into deep cuts in one movement.

Zelgadis gasped and then moaned again into Xelloss' mouth as he experienced the pain filled pleasure of the demon's touch.

Xelloss smirked against the youth's mouth and rubbed their hips together. Zelgadis' arousal was easily noticeable through his drenched pants. "Like that do you?" He brought up his fingers to the chimera's face again, short claws now lightly tipped in blood. "I knew you would."

He once again ran his nail over the chimera's lips, leaving a small smudge of his own red liquid on them. "There is a dark side to you Zelgadis, one that you prefer not to see." He closed in and seductively licked the blood from the others lips. "Not only will I make you see and enjoy it but I will make you crave and need it." Xelloss smiled darkly, a glimmer in his eyes that told Zelgadis what he was declaring would be a pleasurable promise.

Zelgadis still couldn't seem to find his voice as the Mazoku began slowing making his way down his body. He kissed, licked and nibbled at the young man's wet stony skin as the clawed nails of one hand followed his path, scraping lightly in his wake.

Through his pleasure filled haze, Zelgadis could feel the demon's wicked smile against his stomach. Xelloss' fingertips became electrified by magic and the chimera had no time to prepare himself before the digits came in full contact with his wet skin.

Zelgadis gasped at the shock and groaned in bliss as Xelloss ran his tongue tenderly over the scorched stony flesh.

While continuing to kiss and lick the wounds, Xelloss slid his once again normal hands over Zelgadis' hips and slipped them under the edge of his pants and underwear, pulling them down until the wet garments fell off the youth in a heap at his feet.

Even as Xelloss knelt before him, Zelgadis still couldn't find any effort to protest. In the back of his mind, he thought that was odd but he really couldn't bring himself to give a damn.

Xelloss electrified his fingertips once more and dug his nails into the wet skin of the chimera's hips at the same moment he took him completely in his mouth.

Zelgadis practically howled at the sensations. The demon before him continued to give him delightfully mind blowing pain and pleasure. Through the fogginess of his brain, he could barely make out the sounds of a far away knocking sound.

Opening the eyes he hadn't realized he closed, he saw Lina standing in the corner of the room watching them. How long had she been there? He really didn't know and couldn't even bring himself to care enough to be embarrassed at being caught in such a compromising position.

The look on her face easily betrayed the fact that she was very much enjoying the display before her. She called out to him in a questioning voice that didn't match her expression, "Zel?"

If Zelgadis couldn't find the words to speak before, he certainly wasn't going to be able to do so now as Xelloss continued to bring him closer to the edge with his skillful mouth and electric fingers.

Lina continued to watch with half-lidded eyes as her hand seemed to move of its own accord to slip into her own pants. Again, she called out in a voice that was questioning, "Zel?"

Zelgadis could feel he was just a few mere seconds away from his release when suddenly Xelloss removed his mouth from him and in that same moment Lina yelled at him from where she stood, "Zel! Wake up!" The outburst was immediately followed by Xelloss slapping the young man in the face.

Zelgadis blinked in surprise as Lina's annoyed red eyes glared down at him. Finding himself in bed where he should be, he was finally able to piece together that what happened had been a dream. Normally, he would have been able to tell he was dreaming much sooner.

He quickly felt out his senses, looking out into the astral plane for any proof that Xelloss had been tampering with his dreams again. He was filled with mixed emotions when he could find no evidence that the Mazoku was ever there and was forced to accept that what he dreamt was completely of his own mind's creation.

Lina was becoming increasingly annoyed at his slow return to the waking world and she slapped him again to be sure he wasn't about to fall back asleep. "Get up Zel. If you don't wake up soon, Amelia will come up here to see what's taking so long and you probably wouldn't be happy about her seeing your current state." She grinned wickedly at him.

Still groggy and confused, Zelgadis looked down at himself to see what she was talking about. In the heat of the summer night he had decided to forgo his night shirt and sleep just in his pants and a thin blanket. Through the thin material it was quite easy to see that the arousal he felt in his dream was still manifesting itself in the waking realm.

He blushed furiously and turned on his side to better hide his erection and grumbled at her. "Why are you in my room Lina?"

The red head had been on his large bed, sitting on her knees by him so she could better reach him to slap him awake. She grinned, "Well, we went downstairs to eat breakfast and since you weren't there I came to wake you up. It's unlike you to sleep in." She added as an afterthought, "And so deeply asleep too."

She fiddled with the talisman she wore on her left wrist, "I told Amelia that I decided I wanted to go ahead and wear my amplifiers with my new dress, and it would be no big deal to stop by your room on my way back."

Her returning grin practically split her face in half, "I can see now why you were still asleep. Must have been one hell of a dream. You're lucky it was me who came to wake you up and not somebody else."

Zelgadis groaned and grabbed a nearby pillow and put it over his head. He didn't have the capacity to deal with this kind of thing before his morning coffee, "Leave me alone."

Lina ignored him of course. "So are you going to tell me what you dreamt about?" She found it too much fun mercilessly teasing Zelgadis to be embarrassed herself at finding him like this.

A muffled reply came from under the pillow, "No."

"Did you dream about doing stuff with Xelloss?"

"Shut up." Was the immediate response.

Lina's smile was perverted and wicked. "You did!" She started to try to pull the pillow off his head, still grinning. "Did you dream about me too?"

Zelgadis held the pillow tightly, not letting her take it, "Go away Lina."

The red head laughed delightedly. "You did, didn't you?"

The chimera had a sudden impulse, one that he'd possibly get a Fireball for but he was willing to risk it to shift some of this embarrassment back onto his tormentor.

He removed the pillow from his head and looked Lina straight in the face. Smirking confidently but still with a blush tinting his cheeks he told her, "Yes, you were in my dream. You want to know what you were doing?" He sat up to look at her at eye level so she would feel the maximum effect of embarrassment. "You were touching yourself while you watched Xelloss suck me."

His smirk grew as the smug grin was wiped clean off her face, replaced by shock and he decided to up the ante; if he was going to get roasted, he may as well make it completely worth the effort. "You seemed to really be getting off on watching it too."

Lina's face turned beet red and her mouth hung open and Zelgadis was really surprised that she wasn't beating him up for being perverted or trying to protest that she wouldn't like that sort of thing.

A thought occurred to Zelgadis and he chuckled, Lina's earlier grin from when she had the upper hand now plastered on his own face, a look of knowing added to it. "You really would get off on seeing that wouldn't you?"

Lina's face turned impossibly redder and Zelgadis briefly wondered if she was in danger of blacking out. When she finally responded she shrieked at him "No!- I don't- I mean- _shut up_!"

She grabbed one of the nearby pillows and flung it at his head. It was definitely better than getting a Fireball. Why she didn't use magic to lash out at him was anyone's guess, Lina probably knew why least of all.

He could only laugh as the pillow was shredded on his hair and seemed to explode in a flurry of feathers.

The sudden rain of pillow contents seemed to help take the edge off of Lina's mood. She tried her best to hold onto her indignation and to not break into laughter too. Instead she crossed her arms and pouted like a child having a tantrum. At least she wasn't getting angrier.

Zelgadis was glad he had been able to turn the tables on her without being truly punished for it. However, he was reminded of his current state by an ache that was beginning to form below his waist. Seeing as how Lina hadn't melted his face off yet and with the events of the day before still fresh in their minds, Zelgadis made an impulsive decision that was driven by need and followed through by his still half asleep brain.

He moved to sit in a better spot on the bed so he could gently move her arms from being crossed. She looked up at him with an eyebrow raised, about to question him, when he held one of her wrists up to his lips and began kissing and licking it.

A chill ran up her spine when the sensitive flesh that held so many vital veins close to the surface was delicately grazed by one of his fangs.

He continued to kiss and lick his way up her arm. He had been slowly moving them so by the time he had finally reached her neck he was nearly laying on top of her. He was careful to keep all of his weight on his elbows and upper thighs so that he wouldn't crush her with his stone body.

Zelgadis nibbled up under her jaw line while gently rubbing his hardened length against her through their clothing, causing her to bite her lip and moan lightly.

When he finally made his way up to her lips and kissed her deeply, his actions were derailed and the moment was shattered as Lina started laughing.

He pulled back to look at her, trying to figure out what was so funny. She bit her lip, trying very hard to stop giggling, "I'm sorry Zel. It's just… you've got some bad morning breath right now."

Zelgadis looked absolutely crestfallen and mortified as he looked away from her.

Lina reached up to wrap her arms around his neck, careful to avoid hurting herself on his wire hair. She hugged him closely and licked his ear before telling him, "It's ok. I really need to get back downstairs before they get suspicious anyway. We can finish this later though."

Blushing, she kissed him on the cheek and pulled her arms from around his neck. Taking the hint that the moment was over, Zelgadis moved away from her and sat on the edge of the bed still feeling humiliated.

She really didn't do it on purpose this time so Lina actually felt bad for embarrassing him for once. Getting up she grabbed something she had brought with her into his room and had left on the nightstand when she woke him up.

Zelgadis heard her say "Catch!" and turned around just in time to get some dark fabric thrown in his face.

"What's this?" He asked, holding up the material.

She smirked, "Well _obviously_ it's a shirt."

Zelgadis frowned at her, "You know what I mean."

She just smiled at him and reached over to the nightstand again to grab a pair of pants to hand to him. "I figured your clothes would still be kind of wet. So sometime after you left last night I snuck down to the tailor's store room and swiped you an outfit."

Zelgadis laid out the shirt and pants to get a better look at them. The shirt was a very dark, almost black, navy colored sleeveless tunic. The bottom hem was about as long as his regular shirt and the neckline was wide with a small slit in front laced together by a leather cord. He also noticed it would be much more form fitting than his usual loose traveling clothes. The pants were simple and in a slate gray color that matched well with the shirt.

The chimera was slightly taken aback. She'd gotten something just for him - she'd stolen it of course, but that was just a detail. "Thank you."

Lina smiled up at him, "I thought you'd look good in it. I know you always wear long sleeves but I was hoping you'd wear it anyway." She blushed lightly, "I'd kind of like to see you wearing something that shows off your toned arms at least once."

Zelgadis blushed at her flattery, but she didn't give him a chance to respond to it. She stood up and got ready to leave. "If anyone asks, just tell them the tailor gave it to you when I got my dress yesterday."

Straightening out the aforementioned summer dress, she walked to the door. Turning back to grin at him mischievously she said, "I'm going back downstairs now. I'll tell them you're awake and taking a bath so they don't think to question what's taking you so long while you _take care_ of certain things."

Lina continue to grin wickedly at the scowl Zelgadis gave her and turned back toward the door. Opening it and walking out, she left him with one last jab, "Be sure not to take too long though. Amelia's really wanting to go check out the festival in town. She may be impatient enough to send Gourry up to get you." She laughed at the blushing angry look on the man's face as she closed the door behind her.

Her hinting was right of course. He was going to have to _take care_ of his problem before heading downstairs to meet the others.

Zelgadis stood up and walked toward the bathroom. Before he did anything else he was going to make sure he brushed his teeth.

* * *

><p>By the time Zelgadis made his way downstairs everyone else was just finishing up breakfast.<p>

Lina seemed to have a secret talent for guessing clothing sizes because his new outfit fit Zelgadis perfectly.

The pants and sleeveless tunic fit comfortable snug on his body, showing off all the right planes and curves of his slightly muscular build. He wore his belts over the tunic as he normally did and they really made the outfit look complete.

Out of the corner of her eye, Lina looked him up and down appreciatively while continuing to eat the last of her breakfast. She was right about him looking good in that shirt.

Zelgadis moved to sit down at the table and despite her crush on him having waned, Amelia smiled happily at him with a blush on her face, "Zelgadis-san I like your new clothes. They look really good on you."

Even Sylphiel looked at the chimera appreciatively and blushed in agreement with the princess. "I think so too."

Lina smirked smugly at him from across the table, "Me too."

Gourry gave him a thumbs up between shoveling more food in his mouth.

Zelgadis couldn't help but blush at all the attention and mumbled a 'thank you' to their compliments.

Amelia made a pouting face. "You guys getting new clothes makes me want to get some too." Her face brightened up. "We should go shopping before we go to the festival!"

Pakota yawned from where he sat, still halfway asleep in his chair. "You may as well. Most of the festival attractions won't open up until this afternoon anyway."

Lina was about to protest, she really didn't like clothes shopping very much, but then she remembered why she was wearing the Taforashian dress in the first place. Her usual shirt had been shredded, then incinerated in demon flames. She had been planning to get a replacement by herself, but there was really no reason not to go with Amelia and the others.

The red head nodded and the princess and Sylphiel started getting excited about going shopping.

There was no way Lina would suffer this alone. She turned to the boys, "Hey, you guys are going to come to give your second opinions on our clothing choices right?" She smirked at them.

Zelgadis and Pakota were shaken out of their morning grogginess with varied wide eyed looks, but before they could argue, Gourry innocently spoke up for the lot of them. "Sure!" He smiled happily.

While Amelia and Sylphiel squealed happily and began chattering again, Zelgadis and Pakota took the opportunity to kick the blonde under the table and give him dirty looks.

The two girls paid no mind to his sound of pain or the anger resonating off of the other two males. They were too engrossed in their planning of which store to visit first. Lina just smirked in triumph as she drank the last of her coffee.

Several hours and many stores later, the girl's were all walking happily back to the palace with their purchases, the guys trailing behind them, forced to carry said purchases.

Pakota and Zelgadis had made sure to tell Gourry that they would make him regret ever opening his mouth that morning. The blonde couldn't understand what they were so upset about. He'd had fun helping the girl's shop. As long as they hadn't tried putting dresses on him, he was just fine with shopping.

Amelia and Sylphiel had bought a few summer dresses each, while Lina had gotten two new traveling outfits. The one she would normally wear and a spare; just in case her clothes ever got destroyed again.

Once they got back, Amelia and Sylphiel took their new clothes upstairs to change. Lina decided she would continue to wear the dress she was already in but went upstairs to drop off her new clothing in her room.

They ate lunch at the palace before leaving again, this time to finally go to the festivities.

The festival was set up in the town square and would be going on until the day after the ceremony. Of course, going on the first day meant they had a wider variety of prizes to pick from and food to eat before everything started to run out over the course of the three days. Aside from that, they would all be preoccupied with the ceremony and ball the next day.

Lina grinned and cracked her knuckles. "Ok. Where should we start?"

Amelia looked around at all the booths and people and spotted something that interested her. "How about that one?"

Zelgadis' eyebrow raised marginally, "A goldfish scoop game? Amelia, where would you keep a goldfish? It would surely die on the way back to Seiyruun."

The princess pouted and crossed her arms. "Fine."

Surprisingly, Pakota spoke up, "If you win any you can keep them in the koi pond in the palace garden."

Lina gave him a look, "Wouldn't big koi fish just eat tiny little goldfish though?"

The prince scratched the back of his head, "Actually there are no koi fish in the pond anymore." He looked guilty, "We may have forgotten about them and several other pets when we sealed Taforashia."

Amelia gasped and looked like she might cry, "You mean they starved to death? Those poor things!"

Pakota looked pretty uncomfortable. "Well, we kind of had more important things to worry about at the time." He sighed, "The point is you can play the game and keep your goldfish at the palace."

"Sounds good enough to me." Lina put her hand on Amelia's shoulder and pushed her over toward the booth before the girl could start crying over fish that, in all likelihood, had died back when she was still a toddler.

After a few hours, the group was becoming bogged down carrying their various prizes and purchases. They had everything from sweets to stuffed teddy bears.

Amelia carefully carried the bowl containing the three goldfish they'd won while licking away at a lollipop that was almost as big as her head.

Lina and Gourry had stopped for funnel cake, thankfully keeping their orders light – which meant five funnel cake for Gourry and three for Lina. Zelgadis thought he might get sick just from watching them eat the massive amounts of sugar drenched fried dough.

Sylphiel was carrying a stuffed animal that she'd convinced Gourry to win for her. When the swordsman had done that, Pakota had shyly asked Amelia if she'd wanted him to win a prize for her as well. She blushed and happily agreed. He'd won her a stuffed cat and was stuck being the one to carry it since she had taken on the sole job of 'protector of the goldfish.'

Zelgadis had found a really nice pocket knife with a dark abalone handle that he liked a lot and ended up buying it.

Something caught his eye at the next stall over. Looking back to see that the group was still mingling around the stalls a little ways away, Zelgadis bought the item. The stall keeper put it in a small pouch for him to carry. He took it and placed it and his new pocket knife into his pants pocket.

As he was on his way to see what had Gourry so enthralled, he was stopped by Lina's sudden outburst of laughter. When he turned to look in her direction, he immediately wished he'd had the sense to take off running instead.

In her hands she had a headband with white rabbit ears sticking up out of it and she had a look on her face that Zelgadis thought was probably used as the image that greeted the newly departed to hell.

"Oh Zel~gaaaa~dis" she sang as she wiggled the item in her hands. "Look what I found!"

The color drained from the chimera's face. "Please tell me you did not buy that."

Lina's grin was borderline maniacal. "Not yet, but I was thinking about it. I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like to see Zelga-bunny again."

Zelgadis felt sick to his stomach, but there was still hope! "I will give you ten silver pieces if you _don't _buy that." He quickly added on just in case, "Or anything remotely similar to that."

She gave a mock pout, still obviously feeling the effects of whatever kind of evil was possessing her. "But I miss seeing Zelga-bunny _somuch_."

He knew he was falling into her plot, but he didn't care, he just wanted that damn thing to stay away from him, "Twenty silver pieces."

Lina put her finger on her chin and playfully pretended to consider it, twirling the item in her other hand. "Hmm, I don't know." She drawled out, a slight sing-song still in her voice.

Zelgadis didn't think any of this was funny, "Lina!"

The sorceress suddenly looked back at him again, grinning, "Make it thirty and it's a deal."

"Fine. Just put that thing back!" Zelgadis' eyebrow twitched.

She put the item back on the stall table she was standing next to and walked over to him with a big merchant's smile on her face. "You can pay me later."

The chimera grumbled and continued his previously interrupted walk over toward where Gourry still stood, now followed by Lina.

The blonde was standing at an art vendor's booth intently staring at a painting with the customary look of confusion on his face. He saw them walk up out of the corner of his eye. "Hey, does this guy look familiar to you? I think I may have seen him somewhere before."

Lina and Zelgadis looked over at the painting he was pointing to and Lina smacked him over the head. "That's a painting of Rezo the Red Priest you idiot!" Zelgadis just rolled his eyes and sighed.

Gourry rubbed the bump on his head. "Oh. Have we met him before or something?"

Lina smacked him in the head again. She vaguely thought if she hit him enough times maybe his brain would suddenly start working again one day, just like that old potions making device in the Sorcerer's Guild in Zefilia. "We fought him. Twice. And a copy of him too."

"Copy?"

Lina groaned and rubbed her temples, "I'm not going to explain this again."

Fortunately she was saved from having to as Amelia came up to them as quickly as she could while carrying the goldfish bowl. "Lina-san! Lina-san! You've got to come see this!" She smiled all bubbly and giddy. If it weren't for her three little charges in her arms she would be bouncing up and down.

"What is it Amelia?" Lina tried to look in the direction that the princess had come from for any sign as to what had her so excited.

"You've all got to come see for yourself!" She smiled and started leading them back to where she was before.

They followed her up to a game booth where she had left Pakota and Sylphiel. Both of them were actively trying to win the prizes the booth offered.

Reaching their destination, Amelia waved her giant lollipop in the direction of the prizes that lined the stall. "Look Lina-san! It's us!"

Sure enough, there were dozens of plushies in the stall, each of them made to look like one of the 'Saviors of Taforashia'. There was Lina, Gourry, Zelgadis, Amelia and even Xelloss and ironically, the plushie version of Pakota and even some Rezo plushies too.

Zelgadis didn't really know how to feel about this discovery but Lina did. She grabbed the game barker by the front of his shirt and yelled at him. "Who the hell do you think you are that you can make profit off of my image?"

The poor man just looked completely confused at her anger. "What?"

Pakota was quick to jump in to try to diffuse the situation between Lina and one of his people. "Let him go. It's not like any of these game stalls make a heap of gold off their booths."

Amelia piped up. "Yeah Lina-san! Don't you feel special to have a plush made after you?" She had set her goldfish bowl down and was now holding a stuffed replica of herself that Pakota had won while she was gone. "I mean look at them! Aren't they adorable?" She hugged her plushie cutely.

Lina let the man go, but gave him one last dirty look before turning to the game stall. "Fine then." She marched up to the counter and demanded, "How much to play?"

The man that ran the booth saw the way the girl treated his barker and he briefly wondered how it was that this irritable girl was the leader of their saviors before answering. "You get five tries for one silver piece."

She reached into her coin purse and pulled out a silver piece, slamming it on the counter. The man handed five balls out to her like she might rip his arm off when she took them.

Pakota, Amelia and Sylphiel had already shaken off the minor Lina-temper episode and had gone back to playing the game. The red head watched as they tried to get the balls into one of the many milk bottles that were standing together in a group, far enough away from the counter that it was a challenge to toss them in.

Not only that, but the balls were incredibly bouncy too, so most of the time they bounced off the edges and pinged around several times before falling in between the bottles.

After the first three balls failed to make it into their targets, Lina was becoming increasingly frustrated. "This damn game is rigged!" Her fourth ball went astray as well.

Beside her, her friends tried to ignore her grumbling as they continued to play.

On her final attempt she shot her arms up in triumph as her ball landed inside a milk bottle with yellow paint around the edges. "I won!"

Pakota noticed the color of her bottle and he cringed for the eventual tirade that would follow.

The game keeper knew it was coming too but he had to tell her. "Yellow bottle winners get to pick from an assortment of candy." He gestured hesitantly to a box of assorted sweets. "Red bottles win a stuffed toy."

"Why the hell didn't you tell me that before?" She yelled at him.

He looked like he might actually tell her 'Because I'm afraid of you,' but Zelgadis interrupted them with a sigh and placed a silver piece down on the counter between them.

"Let me try." He told the man tiredly. He obviously didn't really want to play, but felt he should to try and quell Lina's temper.

The man nodded hastily and handed him the five little balls.

Everyone's eyes widened and their mouths dropped as Zelgadis landed each and every one of his little balls into a red bottle. The chimera smirked at his consecutive successes.

Lina happily collected her prizes and Amelia and Syphiel were quick to ask Zelgadis to win plushies for them too.

The game vendor grudgingly gave Zelgadis more little balls after he'd paid another silver piece.

Ten minutes later, the girls had one of each plushie for themselves. Additionally, each of the boys had their own stuffed doppelganger because Amelia insisted that it would be cute and they should at least have those. She even made sure they got an extra Xelloss plush to give to the Mazoku. Lina didn't want anything to do with a Rezo plush though and Zelgadis was glad for that.

They left the stall, arms full of plushies and the game vender and his barker couldn't have been happier to get rid of them; Saviors of Taforashia or not.

Now with their arms completely full of goldfish, candy and stuffed toys, the Slayers decided to head back to the palace. It was almost time for dinner anyway.

Pakota and Zelgadis felt like they were whipped somehow as they once again carried the girl's new belongings. At least this time the girls' arms were loaded too. Gourry didn't seem to care; he was too distracted by the miniature copy of himself.

* * *

><p>Lina and Zelgadis once again found themselves in Lina's room later that night with a tea tray on the coffee table.<p>

This time was different, however, as Lina had piled all the little stuffed replicas of her friends onto her bed and was looking more happy than Zelgadis thought she ever would while hidden under a pile of stuffed toys.

It was incredibly adorable and mildly disturbing to see the normally fiery sorceress like this.

The palace staff had removed the broken sofa from the night before and replaced it with a new one, but Zelgadis had opted to sit on the floor again while drinking his tea just in case. "Are you going to be like that all night? It's kind of weird."

Lina looked distinctly like a cat, stretched out on the bed underneath her stuffed toys and snuggled the mini Zelgadis that just happened to be closest to her face. "Why? Is it so weird that I can act as girly as Amelia sometimes?"

The chimera snorted, "Yes, actually. It is."

She scowled and threw the mini-Zel at him since he seemed so intent on ruining her childish mood.

The plush didn't make it far enough to hit him, which angered Lina more and she threw the next one, which happened to be the Gourry plush, at him. This time it hit him in the arm, jostling the tea in the cup he held and splashed the liquid on the hand that held it.

Zelgadis frowned at her annoyed, and set the cup down, looking around for something to clean himself up with. He hadn't thought to grab any napkins and he didn't want to wipe the tea on his new pants. Without any other options, the chimera simply licked the liquid off his hand, not thinking anything of it.

Of course he had no idea what it looked like to Lina and the girl watched him intently from her pile of stuffed toys.

The chimera happened to catch the look in her eye and stopped mid-lick of one of his fingers. He decided he wanted to test out his observation from that morning and see if he couldn't get them to continue where they'd left off before.

He couldn't believe what he was about to do, but curiosity is a powerful thing, even for 'Heartless sorcerer swordsmen'.

With their eyes still locked, Lina's breath caught in her throat as Zelgadis' licking of his digits switched from clinical cleaning to seductive.

Her eyes widened in disbelief as he even went as far as sucking one of his fingers, putting a very clear image in her mind of something else he could be sucking on.

Zelgadis grinned, hand clean and curiosity satisfied. Lina really did like to watch. Voyeurism was inherent in most humans but she seemed to like it a lot more than he thought she would.

Wanting to see how far he could run with it, the chimera stood up, slowly walking toward Lina with a smirk on his face. "You really are a voyeur." He came to a stop just before her bed and looked down at her. His blushed darkened but he was able to make his voice still come out smooth and in control when he added, "I can't help but wonder how you would have reacted to seeing what I did after you left my room this morning."

It only took a few seconds for Lina to remember how he was when she left his room earlier that day and her face burned as mental images swam in her mind.

Zelgadis smirked in triumph at the knowledge that it seemed he had power over her. He never thought he would be the kind of person to enjoy having sexual power over someone else. He couldn't explain just how good it felt.

He idly thought it was probably his demon aspect that enjoyed it rather than his true self. He could reflect on that later though, right now he had a task in mind.

Lina bit her lip as Zelgadis leaned down over her, invading her personal space. "Didn't you say we could continue what we were doing this morning later?"

The sorceress couldn't seem to find her voice but she nodded enthusiastically. She wasn't sure what had suddenly gotten into Zelgadis but she liked it.

Leaning in the rest of the way, the chimera kissed her passionately as he carefully lowered himself onto her bed.

They quickly found themselves in the same position they had been before, completely ignoring the stuffed toys around them.

Lina instinctively spread her legs just a bit as Zelgadis lay above her, resting on his elbows. She began running her hands up his exposed upper arms as they continued to kiss.

Zelgadis shifted all of his weight on his left elbow as his right hand ran up her thigh, going slow enough so that she could stop him if she became too uncomfortable.

She was more than happy at his touch and whimpered slightly when his hand stopped its movement under her dress right at her upper thigh.

The edge of the chimera's lips curled in a smug smirk as he continued to assault her mouth. He began moving his hand up higher under her dress as an agonizingly slow pace.

Lina moaned in relief when his grasp finally reached her ass and he squeezed, teasingly running his fingers along the band of her underwear.

"Oh my! It seems I've come back just in time to catch all the fun!"

Lina and Zelgadis' eyes snapped open and their heads whipped around to see that Xelloss had appeared in Lina's room, his staff was propped up against the wall behind him and he had a lustfully mischievous look in his open eyes. "Please don't stop because of me."

The humans turned to scowl at him with dark blushes on their faces but neither really saw a need to move from their current position, since Xelloss had already seen them in worse states the day before.

"I must say though, seeing you two like this amongst all of these miniature likenesses gives me some very interesting new ideas." He smirked wickedly and picked up the Amelia doll that was closest to him.

Zelgadis twitched and Lina sneered, "Whatever this idea is, I'm pretty sure we wouldn't like it, so you better just keep it to yourself."

Xelloss pouted cutely, but still held mischief in his eyes.

Zelgadis sighed and disentangled himself from the girl and sat up, the mood having been completely shattered once again.

Lina whimpered at the loss of contact and grabbed the Pakota plush that was next to her hand and threw it at Xelloss. "Why'd you have to go and interrupt us?"

The demon caught the projectile in his other hand, "Well, I was just coming to see what you were up to." His grin spread, "I had no idea what you'd be doing, but as I said, please don't stop because of me."

Zelgadis grumbled and Lina threw the next plush at Xelloss. With his hands full, the plush of herself hit him in the face. "Too late. You already killed the mood. Thanks for that by the way." She said sarcastically.

Unperturbed by being hit with the stuffed item, he moved in close to her with a seductive smile. "My apologies. I can help you recover it if you like."

Zelgadis watched out of the corner of his eye as Lina took a deep breath at the demon's close proximity and suggestive tone, then with decisive movement, shoved his face away from her, "Not right now thanks. I'm still annoyed with you."

Xelloss pouted again, standing up straight and looked over toward Zelgadis. Noticing the new outfit, he didn't even try to hide the fact that he was checking him out. "My, my Zelgadis. Don't those clothes look incredibly appealing on you?" His demon eyes roamed over the chimera's body appreciatively.

The young man crossed his arms and scowled, "You can't win me over with flattery."

The demon smirked, "But what I say is the truth, not merely flattery."

Zelgadis only continued to scowl, "I don't care what you call it – it won't help you get into my pants right now."

Xelloss smiled widely, easily spotting the wide opening that the chimera unintentionally left. "So you're saying I might be able to use flattery to 'get into your pants' some other time?"

His only answer was a decidedly dirty look.

The demon chuckled lightly but knew he wouldn't be getting anywhere with either of them for the moment. Sighing, Xelloss tossed the two plushes in his arms back onto the bed and picked up the ones off the floor and added them to their companions.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed he said, "Alright then. Can you at least tell me where these came from?" He asked, holding up the Lina doll, smiling, "They're very cute."

Lina's annoyance had burnt off and she searched through the pile for her Xelloss plush and the extra one meant for the demon. "There was a game booth at the festival with these as prizes." She handed him the extra mini Xelloss, "Here. Amelia insisted that everyone each have their own at the very least."

Xelloss took the plush from her. He wasn't surprised to find the miniature likeness of him had his customary smile. He only allowed a few chosen humans to see anything else after all. The two before him were at the top of that list.

He smiled pleasantly, "Thank you. I suppose that means Zelgadis has his own too?"

If either of the humans noticed he hadn't used an honorific, they didn't show it.

Zelgadis nodded his head. "Yeah. It's in my room. I don't know what I'm going to do with it when we travel again though. Or what Lina will do with all of these for that matter." He gestured to the pile with a raised eyebrow.

Lina stuck her tongue out at him, unconcerned about the problem for now.

The demon smiled happily. "I can hang onto them for you if you like."

They looked at him questioningly and to prove his point, Xelloss made the miniature version of himself disappear completely then reappear again. "See? Storage is no problem for me."

Lina raised an eyebrow at him suspiciously. "And what would you want in return for your storage services?"

Xelloss grinned, "Nothing much. Let me have one of each of your miniature replicas and we'll call it even."

Lina grabbed her doppelganger out of his hands, "I only have the one, so it's gonna have to be no."

Chuckling, the demon shook his head. "No you misunderstand. I would make copies of them."

Lina and Zelgadis were intrigued, "What do you mean by that?"

Xelloss picked up the Zelgadis doll and put his hand out toward Lina, "It's easier to show you."

Reluctantly she handed her doppelganger back to him. Taking it, he placed them both together on the bed. Reaching into his bag he fumbled around for something he wouldn't mind parting with.

He came up with some alchemist's research notebook on experiments dealing with Mazoku that he needed to destroy anyway; the alchemist himself, having met an untimely end in a very unfortunate accident shortly after meeting Xelloss.

He placed the notebook beside the dolls and traced a circle around the three items with his finger, a blue flame igniting a trail behind him that didn't burn.

Lina and Zelgadis continued to watch in fascination as he traced a line that ran between the plushes and the notebook. When he snapped his fingers the notebook ignited in the blue flame. When the fire subsided, the flames of the circle did too and they found that the notebook was gone, replaced by Lina and Zel plushes that were identical to the originals that sat next to them.

The two humans looked impressed. Lina grinned, ever the profiteer, "That little trick has to come in handy. You have to teach me that."

Xelloss smirked and pick up his new possessions to make sure the copy was completely successful. "I'm afraid that was a Mazoku ability. You would be unable to cast it."

Lina fumed but was suddenly hit by a brilliant idea. "You said before that if we agreed to your deal you'd help us out however we wanted right? If we find some really good treasure, will you make duplicates for me?"

The smile on the demon's face took on a maniacal tint. "So you want to agree to my proposal?"

Zelgadis looked questioning from where he sat and Lina blushed but looked mildly confused, "Like you said before, that much is pretty obvious at this point."

Xelloss strange smiled didn't wane. "But you realize that you have yet to formally agree."

Lina and Zelgadis suddenly looked suspicious and the chimera asked, "Does it make a difference?"

The demon nodded, "It does."

"How so? It's not like we'd be entering in a 'Pledge' contract or anything right?" Zelgadis couldn't keep the suspicion out of his voice.

Xelloss shook his head, still smiling, "No, but it is a pact. As a Mazoku, I and any who make a formal agreement with me are bound to uphold the terms until such a time as the agreement is canceled."

Lina's merchant mind quickly understood why it was he was suddenly so happy. "So basically, if we verbally agree to your offer right now, we're contractually obligated to have sex with you whenever you want and in return you have to do the same in addition to helping us out whenever we ask."

Xelloss nodded happily.

Zelgadis had to ask, "And what if we formally agreed and there was a time you wanted sex and we didn't?"

The demon grinned darkly at him, "Then it would be well within my rights to claim it anyway. However, you shouldn't worry; I would always make sure you enjoyed it… eventually."

Lina and Zelgadis couldn't suppress a cold shiver at the threatening promise.

The red head looked slightly nervous, "Then if we agreed right now, you'd probably take advantage of the arrangement right away." She knew that Xelloss could take them whenever the hell he wanted to, agreement or not. However, since he seemed to be playing this game of theirs by a certain set of rules, she felt safe… for the moment.

Xelloss grinned at the other two. They were just so much fun to mess with. If they formally agreed with him right then, it wouldn't make any real difference to his plans. The agreement itself held absolutely no true power either; it was merely a means to solidify their mental state in their acceptance of being his lovers.

Though, he didn't lie when he told them he was bound by his word to uphold his end of the deal. If a demon gave their word, or agreed to a contract, they were completely bound by it. Their nature would not let them go against it. Of course, there were always a wide variety of loopholes, but that was beside the point.

Xelloss actually had no intention of going all the way and having sex with them just yet. He planned to hold off on that just a little bit longer and see to a few other things first. However, it was much more fun if they didn't know that.

Outwardly, Xelloss just continued to smile at Lina and finally answered her question about whether or not he'd demand sex of them right away if they voiced their agreement to the terms. "Perhaps." Well, as much of an answer as he'd give them anyway.

Lina continued to look at him warily, "In that case I think I'll hold off on that for now. If we find something good, I can always hang on to it to copy later."

Xelloss smirked at her smugly, "If you insist, but you shouldn't expect that holding off would stop my advances."

The sorceress nodded slowly.

The demon smiled cheerily again. "Good. I'm glad we have an understanding."

He picked up his three newest possessions and put them in his bag. He could have easily just stored them where he had sent the Xelloss plush before, but he wanted to keep them on his person for a while. For some reason, he seemed to be developing an attachment to the little replicas.

Zelgadis eyed his movements, "Why would you want those anyway? You're not planning on using them as voodoo dolls against us or anything are you?"

Xelloss gave him a mock-offended look, "I would think even you would give me more credit than that. I do not need to rely on inferior magic to get what I want."

The chimera wasn't convinced, "Why would you want them then?"

Xelloss merely shrugged, "Even Mazoku find an interest in trinkets sometimes." He thought for a moment, deciding to actually share a harmless secret with them for once, "Some of us even have collections."

Lina laughed lightly, "Well that's interesting. What is it you collect Xelloss?"

He grinned at her, "That's a secret."

She scrunched her face up at him, "Fine then. Don't tell me."

Zelgadis sighed in annoyance and made to move off of the bed.

"You're not planning on leaving so soon are you?" Xelloss questioned.

"And what if I am?"

Xelloss made to block him from getting off the bed, his hand moving to rest on the mattress on the other side of Zelgadis' legs, making it so the demon's face was very close to his own and effectively stopping the chimera in his tracks. "I believe there's still the matter of a previously killed moment to attend to."

Zelgadis' eyes widened and much to Xelloss' and Lina's disappointment, he brushed past the demon and moved to stand up anyway. "Tomorrow's going to be very busy. You may not need it, but Lina and I need sleep."

The Beast Priest had a plotting smirk on his face. "Sleep here then."

Lina and Zelgadis' head snapped back to look at him. "What?"

"Sleep here." He repeated. "This bed is large enough to fit all of us comfortably." He grinned. "If you're worried about being caught in the morning, I can teleport you back to your room without anyone knowing."

Zelgadis actually looked like he thought about it for a moment before answering, "We have to actually get some _sleep_ Xelloss."

The purple haired demon just continued to smile, "If it would make you feel better, I'll give you my word that I won't start anything. If all you want is sleep tonight, then that's what you'll have."

Zelgadis was skeptical, "Why would you want to stay? Wouldn't you get bored staying up all night while we slept?"

"Mazoku may not need to sleep but it's not as though we are incapable of it. For us, sleep is merely for enjoyment." He chuckled, "And sometimes boredom."

Xelloss grinned, "But to answer your _true_ question – though I may be a creature of destruction, even I find the same pleasures that you do in something as innocent as another's embrace."

The demon chuckled at Lina and Zelgadis' expressions, "You seem surprised. If a golden dragon can be prone to violent temper tantrums, is it so hard to believe that a demon might enjoy tenderness?"

He had a very valid point, and it made it easier to accept this new break in Mazoku stereotyping.

Even Zelgadis thought the idea of simply sleeping next to another sounded pleasant. He sighed and looked to Lina, "What do you think? It's your room."

Lina blushed lightly and smiled, "I actually kind of like the idea."

Even with his centuries of experience, Xelloss had a hard time reigning in the triumphant grin that threatened to consume his face when Zelgadis sighed again in defeat, "Let me grab my sleep clothes."

"There's no need for that." Xelloss snapped his fingers and Zelgadis' pajamas materialized out of thin air and fluttered down to land on the bed.

Reaching over to grab them, Zelgadis suddenly had a thought that he felt the need to address right away. He pointed an accusing finger at Xelloss as the other hand collected his clothing. "I want your word that you will not mess with us in _any_ way while we're asleep." He didn't want Xelloss in his dreams again and felt the need to further clarify, "Not on the physical plane and not on the astral plane and not on any other planes that may exist for that matter."

Xelloss pouted cutely. He hadn't been planning on doing that again that night, but he didn't like having the option blocked. "If you will at least allow me the exception of simple touches and perhaps some kissing then I can accept."

Zelgadis blushed and crossed his arms, "Fine."

The demon smiled, "Then I give you my word that I will agree to your conditions for tonight."

The chimera nodded. He didn't like the additive of 'for tonight' but he supposed with Xelloss it would have to be good enough.

Lina and Xelloss watched Zelgadis as he retreated into the bathroom to change into his sleepwear.

The sorceress turned to look at the demon, a question on her mind, "You don't have any pajamas or anything with you do you?"

He smiled back at her, "No."

She blushed, remembering how she stumbled upon Gourry the night before, "You're not going to sleep naked or anything are you?"

Xelloss grinned lecherously at her, "Not unless you want me to."

* * *

><p>AN<p>

*evil laugh* hope you like the little cliffhanger. I know it's not much of one, but you probably didn't want it to stop there did you? lol

I know the sex dream was a little cliché, but I really wanted some unresisting Zel/Xel. That chimera is just so damn stubborn. *wicked grin* Don't worry though, he'll change his tune eventually.

Please review! If you do Xelloss will make you plushie copies!


	8. Ballroom Blitz part 1

AN

Be sure to see the Slayer's ball outfits that I've drawn to show you their design! There's a link on my profile page to the image.

* * *

><p>True to his word, Xelloss did nothing beyond give them a few light touches and a goodnight kiss to Lina. He would have given one to Zelgadis as well, but the chimera was just too stubborn.<p>

Still not trusting the demon, Zelgadis made sure to erect a barrier around his astral presence before falling asleep to make sure that Xelloss wouldn't poke around in his dreams again. He didn't want the empath to know anything he didn't already. Which probably didn't leave much, but the shaman wanted to hold onto as many secrets as he possibly could.

Lina and Zelgadis wore their pajamas but Xelloss simply removed his bag, boots and cloak and wore the rest of his clothes to bed. He would have removed his gloves too but Lina said she didn't want him to scratch her while he slept. Despite the demon telling her that he, like all Mazoku, did not move while unconscious, she insisted that he keep them on anyway.

They lay with Lina in middle which, in retrospect, was probably a bad idea. When she tossed and turned in her sleep, she punched Xelloss in the face and possibly broke her toe when she kicked Zelgadis in the shin. They wouldn't know until she woke up.

Eventually, she settled down and the rest of the night passed peaceably. When Zelgadis' awoke about an hour before sunrise, he discovered why he hadn't been assaulted in his sleep again.

Sometime in the night, Lina had snuggled up close to Xelloss. Her arms were pinned between their bodies, her head was resting on his chest and the priest had wrapped his arms around her in an embrace. Whether it was because he actually wanted to hold her or it was simply because he was trying to keep her from flailing again, the chimera couldn't say.

Seeing the two of them curled up in sleep felt surreal to Zelgadis. Xelloss had managed to change the course of their lives in only two weeks time.

The chimera snorted, now that he thought about it, it wasn't really any different than every other time the demon waltzed into their lives. Only this time, the reason was personal and he hadn't come at the forefront of a world endangering threat.

The young man continued to reflect on how much Xelloss had completely demolished everything they thought they knew about Mazoku. Hell, the fact that the demon was actually __asleep__was surprising.

Watching them, Zelgadis couldn't help but feel a little disappointed that Lina had snuggled up to Xelloss instead of him. However, he couldn't really blame her. He didn't think that using a rock as a pillow would be very comfortable.

Xelloss' eyes fluttered open, having sensed the chimera's waking emotions even while asleep. The demon was able to quickly assess what it was that Zelgadis was feeling and wasted no time in offering what he wanted.

Running a hand softly over Lina's hair, the priest told him, "If you want to hold her, all you need to do is say so."

Zelgadis was surprised out his reverie by Xelloss' sudden words breaking the silence of the night. But he quickly turned melancholic, "You're much more comfortable for her to sleep with than me."

Xelloss sighed lightly and unwrapped one of his arms from around Lina to grab one of the pillows that wasn't being used. "One would think that, by now at least, you would have realized that you are not completely limited from certain interactions." He pushed the pillow into Zelgadis' arms. "Some of your problems need only a simple solution."

The chimera was about to make some kind of remark when Xelloss gently rolled Lina over to rest on Zelgadis and the pillow that was now there.

She quickly readjusted. Her head now resting on the feather pillow on his chest and her arms wrapped tightly around him as she mumbled something about 'Zelga-bunny' dreamily.

Xelloss smirked and ran his fingers through one of the long locks of Lina's hair. "You see? Simple solution." He chuckled, "Though I suggest you keep a tight grip on her or else she'll likely start tossing again."

Zelgadis gave him an annoyed look but wrapped his arms around the girl. He couldn't ignore the way his chest tightened as she snuggled deeper into his arms and said something muffled in her sleep about 'Zelga-bunny being so cuddly.'

The chimera was unable to resist the sudden urge to kiss her on her forehead and rub his hand against her back, soothing her while she dreamt.

From where he lay, Xelloss had a serene smile on his face. It wasn't half as cocky and smug as it usually was – but it still held a little bit. "You should go back to sleep Zelgadis. I'll take you to your rooms before anyone comes for you for breakfast."

The chimera looked at him skeptically, but allowed his eyelids to fall shut again. He was still fairly tired after all.

Xelloss decided to go ahead and stay awake. It was only a few more hours until it was time for the humans to get up.

He continued running his fingers through Lina's long hair and imagined what it would be like when he got to see it against her sweaty, naked body as she recovered from satisfying sex.

He smiled to himself. It wouldn't be too much longer now.

* * *

><p>The sun was beginning its journey across the sky when Lina arose. She stretched and sat up in bed, looking around. Xelloss and Zelgadis were nowhere to be seen.<p>

She pouted a little bit. She had hoped to see them when she woke up, but she guessed they must have decided to let her sleep when Xelloss took the chimera back to his room.

Lina yawned and reached up to scratch her head. Her hand froze and her eyes went wide and she suddenly jumped out of bed. She crumpled in pain as soon as she put weight on her right foot and fell face first onto the carpeted floor.

She didn't know why her foot was injured but she had more important things to take care of first. The sorceress picked herself up and managed to limp her way over toward the full length mirror and was not pleased by what she found.

"Oh gods damn it! _Xelloss_!"

"You called?" Xelloss' voice answered just before he appeared, floating behind her.

Lina wasn't surprised at all to see him. She just __knew__he had been watching her reactions and waiting on her to yell.

She turned to him glaring and pointed at her head, "What the __hell__did you do to my hair?"

Every bit of her hair had been done up in dozens of braids, all in different sizes. There was no uniformity between them at all. It looked as though a herd of little girls had gotten their clutches on her whilst she slept.

Xelloss played the role of the innocent priest, "What makes you so sure it was me?"

Lina gave him a look that clearly said 'you've got to be kidding me' and his face broke out in a smile and he began to laugh.

"It's not funny." She fumed.

"Zelgadis certainly thought it was." He smirked at her, "He seemed to think it was good enough to call it revenge for your assault on us last night.

Lina raised an eyebrow, "Is that why my foot hurts?"

The Mazoku nodded, "You kicked him fairly hard and if I were human I'd have a black eye right about now."

The sorceress scowled at him, "Serves you right for messing up my hair like this."

Xelloss grinned, "I believe you have your cause and effect backwards."

"Like hell. We both know you still would have done this if I hadn't hit you." Lina hobbled over toward the nearby chair to sit down so she could cast a healing spell on her injured foot.

The demon smiled happily, "Perhaps."

With her foot no longer in pain, Lina got up and headed toward the bathroom to grab her hairbrush. She came back and sat down on the bed and began to work through her hair. Normally she would just brush it in the bathroom, but she had a feeling she'd be at it for a while this time.

Xelloss sat down on the bed beside her, "Would you like me to brush it out for you?"

"I think you've played with my hair enough for today."

He grinned and reached out to finger a small braid and got his hand whacked by the back of her brush for his efforts.

Xelloss pouted and watched her work while she ignored him.

After several minutes Lina told him, "You know, you guys could have woke me up this morning before you left."

Xelloss raised an eyebrow and he chuckled lightly, "Zelgadis tried to wake you before I took him back to his room. You just slapped at his hands and snarled like some sort of wild animal."

Lina blushed and turned away from him to continue unbraiding her hair. "Oh."

She decided to change the subject with something that he had just reminded her about. "Hey Xelloss. I noticed you stopped using honorifics with Zel and me."

The priest blinked at her curiously, "Well, all things considered, I thought it would be acceptable if I was more personable with you when it's just us. I can go back to calling you Lina-san all the time if you prefer."

She waved her hand, "No, no. It's not that. It's just… strange to hear you say our names like that after using __san__for so long."

Xelloss grinned and leaned over to her. "Stranger than this?" He asked, just before kissing her on the forehead.

Lina blushed again, "No, I guess not. All of these new things just take a little bit to get used to I guess."

The demon once again picked up a braid and ran his fingers down it, "You shouldn't adjust to it all too quickly though. Being new helps make it exciting." He held up the braid to his lips and kissed it.

The sorceress nodded slowly, "I suppose you're right."

* * *

><p>Eventually Lina made her way down to breakfast and Xelloss vanished once again.<p>

The redhead's hair was without braids but it had become ridiculously frizzy because of them. Amelia was shocked and asked what had happened. Lina just told her she slept on it funny while Zelgadis tried his best not to laugh at knowing the cause.

The ceremony wouldn't be until four and the ball would come after that, so the entire day was spent in preparation.

Lina really didn't see the need to spend more than an hour getting ready – and really, even that seemed like a long time – but Amelia and Sylphiel happily dragged her along between handmaidens, hair dressers and manicurists.

The sorceress had to admit that the end result of her hours of torture made her look much better than she expected.

Lina's dress was a simple, elegant ensemble made of two shades of blood red fabric. The slightly lighter of the two was sewn so that it ran along the top edge of the dress, covering her breasts in a crisscross pattern and wrapped around her neck to hold it up. From her chest it came back around behind her in a long tie that ended low, leaving most of her back exposed. The rest of the dress was made of the slightly darker color and there was a slit in it that ran up her left leg.

She had gotten a pair of black sandal-like dress shoes. They did have a raised heel, but since the sole was flat she thought she would be able to walk in them much easier than regular high heels. To match, the sorceress wore a pair of black evening gloves that came up to her upper arms. Lina's hair was tied up in tight, elegant braids close to her head to show off her exposed back in her dress. Thankfully, the hair dresser had done a very good job on the braids and they looked absolutely nothing like Xelloss' abomination that morning.

To top it off, she wore Xelloss' blue pendant and some matching silver chandelier earrings with some similarly colored blue gems in them and a simple bracelet on her left wrist.

Amelia gave her a starry eyed look, "Oh Lina-san! You look gorgeous!" and Sylphiel happily nodded in agreement.

The sorceress blushed at their appraisal. "Uh, thanks."

Amelia's dress was made of icy blue material. It had a low neckline and a mini skirt showed through the front slit of the outer billowing dress. She wore her blue-gemmed tiara to match it and what Lina thought was a ridiculous amount of pearls for her necklace, bracelets and earrings.

Sylphiel's outfit was much more mature. She wore a forest green mermaid tail style dress and long matching evening gloves. Her hair was up in a ponytail and it had been styled to be wavy at the end. She wore the dove pendant with a green gem she had gotten before and the matching green earrings.

The princess smiled at Lina and grabbed for a small case, "Now you just need some make up and it'll be perfect."

Lina backed away, not at all interested in having Amelia do her makeup. She'd seen the girl's drawing skills – or rather lack thereof. "That's ok Amelia. I don't think I want any makeup."

Amelia was about to argue when Sylphiel delicately took the case out of her hands and opened it up, looking for just the right color. "It's alright Lina-san, you don't really need any makeup. You already look beautiful." She smiled happily, "But I do think that some lipstick would make you look even better, especially with the color of your dress."

Lina reluctantly agreed, though felt much better that it wasn't Amelia who was painting her lips with a staining red color.

When she looked in the mirror she had definitely saw Sylphiel's point. The lipstick matched the blood red of the dress well, but without being too red that it stood out glaringly.

Lina couldn't help but grin at thinking about what the reactions of a certain demon and chimera would be when they saw her.

When the other girls were finished getting ready, they walked down to the guest wing drawing room where Zelgadis, Gourry and Prince Phil were waiting on them. Pakota wouldn't be able to meet up with them again until after the ceremony and Xelloss was still missing.

Since the men who were present all had their outfits made by Phil's tailor, they all looked like they were dressed as members of the Seyruun royal family.

Phil looked like he normally did during events like this. Gourry's three-layered white ensemble had a vest with blue accents and the whole outfit was trimmed in gold and he wore his long hair tied back in a simple braid. Zelgadis' long sleeve shirt had a high collar and a low bottom hem with green accents that was just the right shade that it didn't clash with his skin color. Like the other two, his white outfit was also trimmed in gold.

As soon as he saw Lina, Zelgadis' eyes widened and he opened his mouth like he really wanted to say something. Realizing where they were, he shut his mouth again and when Lina smirked knowingly at him, he crossed his arms and looked away blushing.

Standard compliments were exchanged amongst the group and they headed down to the ballroom for Pakota's re-crowning ceremony.

* * *

><p>Lina couldn't believe how incredibly boring the ceremony was. She was sure that if they had done it where people could sit she would have fallen asleep.<p>

Deciding she needed to do something to wake herself up without being rude, Lina quietly slipped out of the ballroom and stood out in the hall to yawn and stretch.

She wasn't there for very long before Zelgadis came out into the hall following her.

"Bored already?"

She gave a long sigh, "Of course! I can't see how you're not."

He chuckled, "It'll be over soon."

Lina stretched again, "Not soon enough."

With all the Taforashians engrossed in the crowning of their prince, Zel and Lina were the only ones out in the large hallway.

Zelgadis leaned his back against the wall next to her and finally told her what he wanted to say earlier. "You look really beautiful tonight Lina."

She gave him a mock-offended look, "But I'm the 'beautiful sorcery genius Lina Inverse' what makes tonight any different?" She grinned smugly.

The chimera frowned, "You know what I mean."

Lina continued to goad him on, trying to get a better compliment out of him, "No, I don't think I do."

Zelgadis sighed and left his spot against the wall and came up close to her. He knew what she was playing at.

She blushed when he placed his hand on the wall by her head and leaned down toward her and said, "You look very sexy." He grinned, "Is that what you wanted to hear?"

Lina stopped blushing and she made a show of looking like she was thinking for a moment, "Hmm, no, I think you can do better than that."

Zelgadis almost rolled his eyes, but decided to humor her just this once and continued stroking her ego. She really did look amazing after all. However, his appraisal wouldn't be free.

He leaned in closer to her and kissed the side of her lips and placed his other hand on her hip, "You look fantastic." He began kissing his way along her cheek to her ear with every word, "Amazing." Kiss. "Gorgeous." Kiss. "Attractive." When he reached her ear he ran his tongue along it and whispered, "You look so downright seductive that I wish we could just skip the ball and finally pick up where we left off yesterday."

Lina blushed furiously and turned her head to kiss him on the lips, but was interrupted by an uproar of clapping coming from the ballroom. The ceremony was over and she whimpered in disappointment when the doors opened and a few people walked out, causing Zelgadis to move away from his close proximity to her to stand by the wall again.

The people passed by and it looked all clear for a moment before Lina thought she would growl in frustration when Amelia came out of the doors looking for them.

"What are you guys doing out here?" She asked curiously. "The dance is starting!"

Lina just waved her off, "The ceremony was really boring, we were just getting some fresh air."

Amelia bounded up to them and grabbed them both by an arm, "Well it's over now so let's go back inside." She said as she dragged them behind her.

Back in the massive room, music was now playing and couples were starting to dance. Amelia looked around and was disappointed to find that Pakota was still busy being congratulated by a mob of people, his new prince's crown gracing his forehead.

She didn't let her disappointment last long before turning to the chimera, "Zelgadis-san would you like to dance with me?"

Zelgadis shrugged, it was a dance after all, "Sure Amelia." He covertly gave Lina a reassuring smile before he led the princess out onto the dance floor.

Lina knew that nothing was likely to ever become of Zelgadis and Amelia anymore but she couldn't help but feel a little jealous.

The red head spotted a passing server, grabbed a glass of champagne off his tray and made herself comfortable, leaning up against one of the large marble pillars while she drank.

Her glass was about half empty when she heard Xelloss' voice behind her and very close to her ear.

"My goodness, you're dressed as though you're trying to seduce a devil."

Lina looked behind her, trying her best to not move too quickly and look anxious to see him. She was trying to play the role of a seductress after all.

When she saw him, she knew she'd be playing the role of the seduced again very soon.

Xelloss was dressed to kill. He wore a sharp black suit with gold trim that showed off his slim body very nicely. Several gold buttons kept the jacket closed and under it she could see a yellow-tan vest with gold embroidery in a filigree pattern. There was also a purple cravat that was just a touch darker than his hair. It had a familiar looking red gem adorning it and he wore matching gems as cufflinks.

The demon's pants were tucked neatly into knee high dress boots and he wore black gloves. Lina was also interested to see that he had his hair tied back in a low ponytail, leaving only a few locks to frame is face.

He looked incredibly suave, but all of that paled in comparison to the lusty and slightly mischievous look in his open eyes.

Lina was brought back to the present by a smirk on his face and she remembered what he had said. She made to take another sip of her champagne, trying to look nonchalant, "Aren't you thinking a little highly of yourself Xelloss?"

The priest grinned, not letting her bait him. "Your very specific choice in wardrobe was meant to catch my interest wasn't it?"

"That depends." Lina took another sip of champagne. She was beginning to feel nervous, "Is it working?"

Xelloss took another moment to appreciate her appearance. To his demon eyes, the dress gave the impression that she had deep wounds on either side of her neck, causing blood to flow freely down her body.

He could feel his own body screaming at him with the need to taste her and take her. After a few moments he managed to fight back the urges for the time being.

Smiling seductively and not trying in the least to hide the lust and desire in his demonic eyes he leaned down to within a hairs breath of her lips and told her, "Very much so."

Lina blushed profusely at his look and his closeness and hoped beyond hope that no one was watching them, but couldn't bring herself to push him away.

"I'm very tempted to whisk you away to your rooms right now." He finally backed away, giving Lina a chance to find where she'd misplaced her breath.

When she did, she couldn't help but smirk smugly even with the dark blush still on her face, "That's funny. Zelgadis said something similar to me not too long ago."

If anything, Xelloss' smile just grew, "Maybe we should collect him and retreat for the evening then?"

Lina looked almost disappointed, "We can't skip out right now. The ball just started, someone would notice if we left."

"Well then, in that case…" Xelloss moved to stand before her and bowed in a very gentlemanly manner and held his hand out, "Would you care to dance, my lady?"

The sorceress blushed again at the slightly over the top chivalry but took his hand and he led her out to the dance floor, stopping long enough so she could leave her champagne glass with a passing waiter.

Once out on the floor, Lina looked nervous, "Just so you know, I'm not very good at dancing."

Xelloss grinned and placed his hand on her hip and held her closer to him than necessary for dancing, "Fortunately, I'm a __very__experienced partner."

Lina's thought her face would melt with the way he seductively said that obvious innuendo.

The demon began leading her across the dance floor in a simple waltz and Lina eventually adjusted to the movements and was starting to enjoy herself.

She saw some girls grouped together out of the corner of her eye. They were looking at her and Xelloss as they danced and were giggling. Lina could hear the words 'Mazoku' and 'handsome' floating over towards them and it made her wonder something.

"Hey Xelloss? Are you going to get in trouble with Beastmaster Zelas over all these people knowing who you are?"

He laughed and smiled as though he knew a secret that he found very funny, "No, actually, Zelas-sama found it to be quite entertaining that these people are so trusting of me despite knowing my race."

Lina continued to dance in step with him, "But doesn't it make it hard to do your job?"

Xelloss shook his head, "Not at all. In fact, it can make some things easier. However, if I need my identity to be kept secret, you should already realize that I can simply change my physical form."

The sorceress looked a little worried, "But you can always change back right?"

The demon grinned at her knowingly, "Why? Do you have an attachment to my current appearance?"

Lina frowned contemplatively, "Well, it's the only way we've ever known you." She bit her lip, "I mean, it's just like it is with Zel, you know? I've known you both this way for so long, it would be hard to see you as anything else."

Xelloss smiled pleasantly, "You need not worry. I can always resume this form as long as I can appear on the physical plane."

She smiled up at him and he could sense her relief at the knowledge.

The song eventually ended and they made their way off the dance floor again.

Standing not far off was Zelgadis whose dance with Amelia had ended a little while ago.

They came up to him and Xelloss couldn't quite suppress a grin as he said to him, "Zelgadis, you shouldn't just stand there like a wallflower. Why don't you come dance with me?"

The chimera cringed at the hand Xelloss offered him "Are you stupid? I'm not going to dance with you."

The priest pretended to pout, "Why not?" He added in a voice that sounded like he was trying to bribe a child, "I'll even let you lead."

"Not a chance." Zelgadis blushed and looked away scowling.

Lina had been doing her best not to bust out laughing at their back and forth.

Xelloss suddenly pushed her into Zelgadis. "Alright then, surely you can't object to dancing with Lina though."

The chimera caught her in his arms and they both frowned at Xelloss who just smiled happily and made a shooing motion with his hands. "Off you go!"

Zelgadis sighed but was secretly happy to lead Lina out to dance with him.

Xelloss smiled smugly as he watched them waltz. Zelgadis wasn't doing as good a job as he did at leading Lina but seeing the two of them dancing was terribly adorable to him for some reason.

Amelia walked up to the priest, still disappointed that she hadn't got to dance with Pakota yet but not letting it bother her too much.

"Oh my, Xelloss-san, don't you look dashing?" She said happily with a little blush.

He smiled down at her, "Thank you. You look very fetching yourself."

She blushed again, "Thank you."

With Lina and Zelgadis dancing together, Xelloss had nothing else to do for the time being, so he decided to offer his hand out to the princess. "Would you care to dance?"

Amelia looked at his hand warily and thought about it for a moment.

Xelloss smirked, "Come now. You should know by now that I don't bite." '__Not you at least'__. He added silently.

She nodded slowly and accepted his hand, allowing him to lead her off.

* * *

><p>The evening continued to pass in a similar fashion.<p>

Amelia eventually got to have her dance with Pakota and Xelloss had to work very hard to reign in the urge to summon his staff and trip her up just like he did in her dream. He couldn't help giggling to himself at the idea though. Especially since Amelia seemed to be unconsciously trying to avoid him as she danced with the prince.

Lina had even danced with Gourry once and Sylphiel didn't seem to mind since the priestess had been monopolizing most of his time already.

Xelloss couldn't seem to keep the Taforashian girls off him and Zelgadis found himself in a similar state. However, where the demon accepted most of his dance partners, the chimera had politely declined most of his.

Lina wasn't without her admirers either. She'd had to punch a drunk guy who had gotten too handsy with her, doing her best not let loose and use magic in such a crowded place to punish him. Another man had thought he might be able to convince her to leave with him and he got kicked in the groin for his trouble.

She eventually found her way back to Zelgadis, "What's with these people?" she asked in a huff.

Zelgadis looked slightly frazzled himself and just shook his head. "Let's get a drink."

Lina nodded enthusiastically and followed him to a beverage counter.

At the table, Zelgadis quickly picked up a glass of red wine and drank from it. While Lina was trying to decide on her choice, he noticed a very attractive, tall blonde woman with a glass of wine in her hand wink at him seductively. He blushed and looked away, afraid she might ask him to dance right in front of Lina. He was pretty sure there would be a jealous fit of some kind if that were to happen.

Thankfully, his worries were dashed as Amelia briskly walked up to them, "Our dinner table is ready if you're hungry."

Lina turned to her, wine choices forgotten, "It's about time!"

On their way out of the ballroom, Lina made sure to pass by Xelloss and pry him away from the girls who were fighting with each other over who's turn it was to dance with him next. They all whined in unison as he was dragged away but immediately started giggling as he blew them a kiss and winked.

Lina grumbled and twisted his arm as she pulled him along and Xelloss just grinned at her as he followed.

Since the turnout for the event was so overwhelming, the party planners had decided to serve dinner in shifts, so that some people would be eating while others were in the ballroom.

The four of them made their way past masses of people down the hallway toward the dining hall.

Inside, they quickly spotted Gourry waving to them from the large table that he, Sylphiel and Pakota were already seated at.

They had just reached the table when a familiar voice rang out, "Lina Inverse!"

Recognizing the voice instantly, Lina cringed and groaned, going ahead and sitting down at the table, trying to ignore the person.

Xelloss wasn't going to let her get away from this freely though. He grinned at her wickedly before greeting their new guest, "Why Martina-san! How have you been?"

Martina came up to them, Zangulus trailing behind, "That's __Queen__Martina to you! You heartless demon!" Apparently, she had yet to forgive Xelloss for his deception.

He just smiled at her charmingly and bowed his head slightly, "Of course."

She eyed him suspiciously and turned her attention back on Lina. "What are you all doing here?"

From where he sat, Pakota was trying to judge this 'Queen Martina'. He was already pretty sure he wasn't going to like her.

Lina smugly smirked, "We were personally invited. You know," she waved her hand flippantly, "being 'Saviors of Taforashia' and all."

Martina scoffed, "_You_?"

"Yes __us___. _You saw us save the world before. What's a country to that?"

The queen crossed her arms but didn't acknowledge the statement. Instead she chose to continue taking out her anger over the grudge she still had against Xelloss.

"Well then why'd they let that _demon _in here?" She pointed accusingly at Xelloss, who just continued to smile innocently, as if he'd never done a bad thing in his life.

Zelgadis sighed and sat down in his chair, "Believe it or not Martina, he's seen as much of a hero here as the rest of us. However, even if he wasn't, you are well aware that the ball is open to anyone who wants to attend and meets the formal dress code."

Lina gave her a mean looking smile, "That being said, I'm surprised they let __you__in here Martina."

Martina's black dress went down to her ankles, but it was noticeably missing several other pieces. The bikini-like top was attached to the bottom dress by little gold rings at her sides, leaving most of her stomach and back exposed. In addition to that, her dress had long slits running up both sides.

The green-haired girl looked outraged, "There's nothing wrong with the way I dress!"

Lina just continued to grin wickedly, "Not for a stripper, but for a queen you should think about changing your wardrobe."

Martina flew into a fit of rage and Zangulus had to hold her back. Lina decided to make faces at her while the girl tried to swing her fists.

Xelloss sat down at the table next to Lina and was delighted by his dinner while the rest of them had mixed reactions; most of which consisted of eye rolling and sighing.

Zelgadis was starting to get annoyed. The ball had already been hectic enough. "Zangulus, how do you put up with her?"

The swordsman was dressed in a fairly standard tuxedo topped with his ever-present ratty hat. He grinned at the chimera as he held back his struggling wife, "I can put up with a lot as long as she puts out."

At that, Martina reared back and butted him in the face with the back of her head, "Don't tell them that! Saying that sort of stuff makes us look bad!"

Lina snickered, "Yeah, you're doing a pretty good job of that all by yourself Martina."

Before the queen could set her sights back on Lina again, Amelia felt it was time to intervene. She put herself between the two women and started trying to change the conversation.

"So how have the two of you been? I've heard various things about why you two have been traveling the countryside." The princess said with forced pleasantness.

Martina finally calmed down and her husband warily let her out of his grasp and rubbed his injured face.

She huffed, "If you're talking about that stupid rumor, that's all his fault." The queen gestured over her shoulder to Zangulus.

"At the very first place we stopped at he told me," She lowered her voice to try to imitate Zangulus, "'If we see Gourry you have to let me fight him again. I know I said I gave up on beating him before we were married but now that I've got a new sword, I want to try it out against him.'"

Zangulus stopped rubbing his face, "That's right Gourry! My new sword, Demonsbane, came as a tribute from a hermit sorcerer in Xoana and I wanted to see how it held up against you."

Gourry had only been halfway listening to the conversation up to this point, but at the mention of a challenge he perked up. He smiled in recognition at his old rival, apparently being a worthy opponent was enough to make Gourry actually remember him. "You bet! When did you want to fight?"

"How about we head outside right now?" Zangulus said with enthusiasm, ready to jump into battle.

Gourry was just about to stand up and agree when the dark haired swordsman had his ear twisted by his wife, "No. You can't run off right now."

Zangulus' face twisted up, he couldn't decide if he wanted to put in the effort to argue with her or not. Thankfully, she felt benevolent enough to give him an ultimatum.

"You can fight him tomorrow or something. Just not now. We've got another reason for being here you know." She released his ear.

Amelia piped in again, "What's that?"

"Why, to find sponsors to continue the rebuilding of Xoana of course." She stated proudly, making a stance, as if begging for money should be considered a hero's job.

The princess of Seyruun was chagrined but smiled politely, "Is that the real reason you've been traveling again?"

Martina nodded, "Yes, it is."

Zelgadis rubbed his temples, "So then why come to a country that's just now getting back on it's own feet to ask for money?"

The fledgling queen seemed to have actually put some thought into this, "Because there's rich people from other countries here to pay their respects to the prince of Taforashia." For a moment she actually looked like she might add on 'Duh!'

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow, "And as the representatives of Xoana, have you paid your respects to the prince yet?"

Martina looked around the room searchingly while saying, "I would, but I haven't seen him yet."

Xelloss face split in half in a smile while most everyone else was contemplating putting their faces in their palms and Gourry was busy staring off into space.

Lina slapped one hand on the table to get the girl's attention while pointing the other across the table at Pakota, "He's right here you idiot!"

Pakota's eye twitched. He hoped Martina's people weren't anything like her.

Martina finally caught sight of the prince and had enough shame to give him a nervous bow and a smile, "M-m-my sincerest apologies! Please, don't think badly of us." She waved her hands around trying in complete vain to fix his first impression of her, "I-it's just that I traveled with these people for some time. I admit that I find it hard not to argue with Lina."

Pakota sighed in exasperation. As a fellow traveling companion of the group he had to see her point. It was almost impossible not to argue with Lina. When a fight with the redhead broke out, everything else seemed to fade off into the background.

Maybe Martina wasn't as bad as he first thought.

"It's fine. Maybe we should have a meeting before you leave Taforashia to discuss ways that we can mutually benefit both of our countries?" Pakota tried to smile at her sympathetically.

Martina bowed several times and elbowed Zangulus to get him to bow too, "Oh yes! That would be very nice! Thank you so much!"

The prince nodded, "Feel free to meet with my aide when you have a minute. She has a planner schedule of all the business meetings with her. She'll probably still be in the main hall overseeing the entry of guests."

The ruler of Xoana agreed happily and hurried off to find the secretary, dragging Zangulus behind her and completely forgetting about her old traveling companions.

Her husband didn't though and he called out as he was dragged off, "Meet me tomorrow Gourry! We'll dual!"

The blonde waved at him as the other was yanked around the corner, "Sure!"

With the distractions gone, Amelia finally sat down at the table.

Also seeing the extra guests had departed, their waiter came over to greet them and serve them water and a few appetizers and left to retrieve the food orders they had placed before the ball even began.

Since Taforashia was still recovering, they had to charge for the cost of meals to the regular diners, but since the group were honored guests they got theirs for free.

Which probably wasn't the best idea since Gourry and Pakota could eat about forty helpings each by themselves. Not to mention Lina's appetite. Even with her hunger cut in half with the use of Xelloss' necklace, she could still put away a ridiculous amount of food.

The swordsman got a spoon thrown at his head from across the table after he inhaled a whole plate of appetizers and Lina threatened to throw something sharp next time if he ate anymore of their shared dishes.

When their entrees arrived, a bottle of red wine was served into each of their awaiting, empty wine glasses as well.

Two waiters bustled around the table, serving everyone but Xelloss a meal, or in Pakota, Lina and Gourry's case, several.

Since he didn't have any traditional food to eat, nor did he need any, the demon leaned back in his chair and swirled the wine in his glass slowly before sniffing it in a manner that easily showed he happened to be a connoisseur.

His eyebrows raised in confusion, as if smelling something other than red wine. He took a quick sip to be sure of what he thought he smelled.

His eyes widened at the taste and he immediately reached out to snatch Lina's wrist to stop her from raising her own glass to her lips. "Don't drink that."

He took the glass out of her hand and it disappeared in green flames.

"Xelloss! Wha-?" Lina started out but she was interrupted by various sounds of shock and outrage as everyone else's wine glasses vanished in green flames as well.

Xelloss stood up and clamped his hand onto the shoulder of the waiter who was passing by him with the wine bottle still in hand.

"Where did this bottle come from?" He questioned the man with a promise of death in his open demonic eyes if he didn't answer correctly.

The man was terrified and didn't know why Xelloss was suddenly looking like he planned to kill him, "Wh-what? Th-this bottle was set out with your food to be taken to your table."

The demon could sense that the waiter wasn't lying and he couldn't feel any malice directed at the group from anyone nearby. He took the bottle out of the scared waiter's hands and continued to scan the room for anyone that seemed out of place.

Zelgadis was starting to pick up on Xelloss' tension. Whatever was going on didn't seem to be one of the Mazoku's weird jokes. "What's wrong?"

Xelloss turned back at the chimera's questioning voice and saw the mixed expressions on his companion's faces.

Incinerating the wine bottle in his hands the demon answered him, deadly serious, "Someone poisoned the wine."

* * *

><p>Dun-dun-dun! Cliffhanger! I told you there would be an actual story plot! Lol<p>

Sorry if it seemed like I was Martina-bashing. I really wasn't. I just think she really would act like that. Lol

Every time I make Lina say 'the beautiful sorcery genius Lina Inverse' I get this image in my head of Lina posing like a Sailor Scout lol  
>"I am the beautiful sorcery genius Sailor Dragon Slave! And in the name of the Lord of Nightmares I shall punish you!-and take your treasure!" hur-hur-hur :3<p>

Please review! If you do, Martina will give you a strip show - I mean… she'll give you a hug!


	9. Ballroom Blitz part 2

AN

Holy crap! This chapter has 25 pages according to Microsoft Word.

There's more sexy stuff! So, NC-17 warning for the second half of this chapter. Not suitable for work, etc etc

* * *

><p>Lina looked around the dining hall quickly and Zelgadis scanned the room much more covertly, as if they were expecting an attack any minute.<p>

Pakota tried to keep calm, "Are you sure it was poisoned?"

Xelloss nodded, eyes continuing to glance around the room, "Of course, I'm sure. I recognize the kind too. Sineptimus Serpent's venom. There was enough in each glass to have killed even Zelgadis-san within an hour."

Lina's eyebrows furrowed and she looked up at the demon, "This may be a stupid question… but you're alright… right?"

The priest could sense the worry she felt and he looked down at her to smile reassuringly, "I'm perfectly fine. No earthly poison can harm me and as soon as I teleport, there won't even be a trace of it left on my physical form."

She did well not to sigh in relief in front of everyone. Instead, she started trying to make plans. "We need to go track down this bastard. What kind of coward uses poison?"

Zelgadis had a wise answer for her, "The kind that wants us dead and doesn't care about honor. It's probably a hired assassin."

Amelia was just about to hop up on the table and start making a justice speech about the cowardly assassination attempt when Xelloss put a hand on her shoulder and stopped her from getting out of her chair.

"Don't attract attention Amelia-san. The last thing we want is to make a scene here."

Pakota nodded to the girl, "We don't want to cause a panic or let the assassin know that we noticed his attempt if he doesn't know already."

She bit her lip and nodded, seeing their wisdom. "But we have to do something about it!"

Xelloss agreed, "You all stay here." He pointed at the two servers menacingly, "You go on about your business as though nothing has happened."

Everyone nodded and the waiters nodded hastily and went back to serving the meal.

The demon thought he should clarify something, "I'm sure I don't have to say this but _don't eat _any of the food until I get back. Someone put a Sleeping spell on Gourry-san if you have to."

The swordsman slumped in his chair and looked abashed, "C'mon, I'm not _that_ stupid." Syphiel patted him on his shoulder comfortingly.

Xelloss nodded. "Good then. Sylphiel-san, you should go ahead and cast Dicleary on him and anyone else who had any food just to be safe."

The priestess nodded and her hands on Gourry started to glow as she began the detoxifying spell.

"I'll be right back." He told them right before vanishing in the middle of the dining hall.

He spent several minutes popping in and out of various places in the kitchen, pantries, ballroom, hallway and several other places, questioning people and seeking out emotions of ill-intent.

However much he looked, he could find nothing out of the ordinary, no one else had seen anything suspicious (aside from his sudden appearance and disappearance) and he couldn't sense any hostility directed at his companions.

Zelgadis had to have been right about the murder attempt being done by an assassin. A hired hit man wouldn't necessarily hold a grudge against any of them.

If that were the case, there was no telling who it could be. Not even for an experienced spy like Xelloss. Even _he_ couldn't find a would-be killer with no out of the ordinary emotions, amongst this many people within such a short amount of time. The assassin would be long gone before he could.

With absolutely nothing to go on, Xelloss returned to the group.

By then, the servers had done as they were told and went about their business and left. His dinner companions were all anxious to hear his news. Amelia was first to question, "Did you find out anything?"

The demon shook his head, "Not a thing. Under the circumstances, I suggest we all continue to act as though nothing has happened but be sure to keep alert."

Gourry furrowed his brow, "But… what about our dinner? Can we eat it?"

Xelloss gave a long sigh, "I suppose I can check all of your food to be sure there is no other poison."

It wouldn't have been a big deal if they had only one meal each, but between Lina, Gourry and Pakota, he had his work cut out for him.

Dinner passed painfully slow after that, as everyone had to have their food checked by the demon before they could eat it. The precautions turned out to be unnecessary though, since there was no additional poison in any of their food.

"So, who do you think was their target anyway? Was it Pakota, someone else or all of us?" Lina asked. The sorceress had no shortage of her own enemies.

Xelloss had already thought about it while he had been searching for the culprit, "I would wager that the intended target could only be Lina-san, Zelgadis-san or Prince Posel."

Zelgadis looked up at him, thinking he knew his reasoning but wanted to ask, "Why do you say that?"

The demon looked thoughtful while telling him, "Well, unless it was an incredibly incompetent assassin, I can't be the target because poison doesn't affect me. Mazoku hunters use holy magic. Furthermore, it's highly unlikely that this person even knew I would be with you. If they did, they would have probably made their attempt later, when I wasn't around to notice the poison."

Lina sighed, allowing herself to show relief, "I guess we were really lucky that you happened to drink the wine before any of us."

The demon nodded, "Yes, it was very fortunate. Sineptimus Serpent's venom has barely any taste and stops the heart from beating. The victim won't notice anything is wrong until they suddenly die. Dicleary can remove it completely, but as I said, you won't know anything is amiss until it's too late."

Xelloss stopped to look at Sylphiel, "It might be possible for a white magic priestess to notice the poison in their own system in time if they ingested any. That being the case, in addition to her being no threat to anyone whatsoever, it's highly unlikely that Sylphiel-san was their target."

"Similarly, Amelia-san is a shrine maiden and should be able to effectively remove the venom if one of you had happened to drop dead long enough before anyone else to alert her to the wine being poisoned."

Amelia looked like she wanted to berate him for talking about them 'dropping dead' so callously but decided to keep her mouth shut.

Xelloss ignored her look, "This leads me to believe that this would-be killer didn't think that there would even be white magic users dining with his target. If he did know, he would have likely chosen another method."

Lina pointed to the princess, "But what if their target was Amelia and they had hoped she would drink first? I mean, her family is full of people who want the throne. It wouldn't be the first time one of them tried to get rid of her or Phil."

Amelia looked scandalized, "Lina-san!"

The sorceress put her hands up and shrugged, "I'm only pointing out facts."

Xelloss shook his head, "Any assassin worth their pay wouldn't depend on a variable like that. They would do everything possible to ensure that their first try was the one that killed. Otherwise, the target is alerted to the attempt and it's much harder to kill them. Just like how we're being cautious right now."

He added on, almost as an afterthought, "And since we can cross the princess off the list, it's unlikely that Prince Philionel is in danger either."

Amelia gasped, "Daddy! I hadn't even thought he might be in trouble!"

She looked like she was about to get up and leave but Pakota grabbed her arm, "Wait Amelia. He said your father _wasn't_ in danger."

"But – I have to go check on him!"

Lina rolled her eyes, "Just wait a minute until Xelloss is done talking and we'll all go check on him."

Amelia looked anxious but nodded.

Gourry pointed to himself curiously, "How come you don't think I would be a target?"

The demon smirked, "The only people who have ever wanted you dead, want to fight you in a battle of skill to the death. None of your enemies would ever try to poison you."

The swordsman scratched his head and smiled, "Hey, yeah. I guess you're right. That must mean I'm lucky that I always know when people are after me."

Lina sighed, "That just leaves me, Zel and Pakota. I'm pretty sure no one in Taforashia would want to kill him but I guess other countries might have a reason to do away with a prince on the night of his re-crowning."

Pakota frowned at her, "Don't act too worried for me or anything."

Lina just waved him off, "I'm just as likely to be the target as you. It' not the first time I made it onto somebody's hit list and it probably won't be the last." She smirked, "Zel's done his fair share of pissing people off too."

Zelgadis just sighed and nodded in agreement.

Lina had a sudden thought, "Wait a minute, Pakota. If it's possible you were the target, wouldn't that make your dad a possible target too? You don't seem to be too worried."

Pakota's eyebrows creased, "It's not something that's well known but my father has a food tester. We've never had anyone try to poison him, but his best friend, the adviser Luka, is really bad about pulling practical jokes on him." He cringed, "Luka probably messed with my father's food several hundred times until he got tired of it and hired a tester so he wouldn't have to suffer jalapeño flavored watermelon or salt in his tea instead of sugar anymore."

Lina snickered, "Sounds like a fun guy."

Zelgadis got their attention back, "Well, even if the king and Phil are safe for now, we should go check on them and alert them to what's going on."

Nods of agreement were shared and everyone rose from the table to leave.

* * *

><p>They checked on Prince Phil and the king and found that they were just fine and were surprised at the news of the murder attempt.<p>

After a few minutes of discussion, they agreed to go on with the ball as though nothing had happened but to keep alert and double security.

They all dispersed back into the ballroom but Lina decided she needed some fresh air.

Out on the ballroom balcony, no one was in sight. The sorceress figured everyone was having too good of a time at the party. That was just fine with her. She was tired of dealing with party-goers.

The redhead leaned out on the railing and looked out across the landscape. It had to be about nine o'clock, but since it was in the middle of summer, the sun had just slipped beyond the horizon and twilight was setting.

The red, waning light was beautiful as it cast its fading glow on all the lush green trees of Taforashia.

"You shouldn't be out here by yourself with a killer on the loose." Xelloss' voice came from behind her, "Just imagine the massacre I'd have to cause if you were murdered."

Lina raised an eyebrow and turned to him, "Is that supposed to be how a demon tells someone of their affection Xelloss?"

He grinned and placed a finger to his lips in a 'that's a secret' pose, "Perhaps… or maybe it's just that I would be outraged that you were killed before I got what I wanted from you."

Lina rolled her eyes and turned around to lean on the railing, facing him, "Does that mean you would go on a rampage if anyone killed Zelgadis too?"

Xelloss leaned up against the railing next to her, "Of course."

"And what if Gourry and the others were killed?"

The demon shrugged uncaringly, "They do not concern me."

Lina smirked and elbowed him in the side, "Oh come on. You may not know Sylphiel and Pakota too well, but if Gourry and Amelia died, it would be like someone killed your pets."

Xelloss tilted his head to the side and suddenly got a mental image of Gourry as a big and loyal golden retriever with his tongue lolling out of his mouth and Amelia as a small, obnoxiously loud and energetic terrier.

"Hmm, I suppose I might mourn over the loss of their entertainment value."

Lina just rolled her eyes again and sighed.

"So what makes Zel and me so special?"

Xelloss grinned at her and leaned over to caress her face with his gloved hand. "I've already told you why."

Lina frowned, "There's got to be something more to it than you find us attractive in power and looks." She was fishing for something and they both knew it.

He just continued to grin, "Does it really matter?"

She frowned at him and opened her mouth to respond, but he took the opportunity to close the distance between them and slip his tongue into her open mouth, effectively distracting her from her questioning.

Lina's eyes widened and she managed to push him off of her, "Xelloss! Not here!" She motioned frantically toward the wide open doorway between the balcony and the ballroom, "People can clearly see us!" Fortunately no one happened to be looking in their direction just then, but that would change eventually.

Xelloss smirked at her mischievously. "Not a problem." He told her just before picking her up, grabbing her legs so that they wrapped around his waist and moved them toward the side of the balcony.

Lina smacked him and struggled the whole way, "Xelloss!"

The demon just chuckled at her until they were out of sight of the ballroom, hidden behind a large pillar. There, his countenance changed and he immediately pinned her against the pillar and kissed her passionately.

She continued to struggle, mostly out of pride, and reluctantly kissed him back. Eventually she forgot what she was protesting about all together and tightened her legs around him and kissed him with enthusiasm.

Xelloss right hand worked its way up her thigh through the slit in her dress and he raised an eyebrow as his hand felt something interesting. He stopped kissing her to pull back and see for himself what he was sure he felt.

A large, lecherous smile graced his features at what he saw, "My, my Lina. _Black_, _lacy_ panties? It seems as though I wasn't the only one with plans for tonight."

Lina blushed madly and didn't say anything in response.

Xelloss kept on grinning, "Come now, there's no need to be like that. Surely, the idea you had in mind was for someone to see you in them." His eyes darted off as he noticed something, "Or perhaps _two_ someones."

She scowled at him and was about to tell him to shut up when someone else's voice made its way into the conversation.

"What the hell are you doing that out here for?"

Lina whipped her head around at the newcomer but relaxed when she saw that it was Zelgadis – though not very much.

Xelloss, of course, knew he was there before he'd even come around the pillar.

He smirked at the blushing chimera, completely ignoring his question and lifted up the edge of Lina's dress to give him a much better view of her underwear.

"Don't you think Lina wore these sexy little panties for the sole purpose of us seeing her in them tonight Zelgadis?"

The chimera continued to blush and stare at Lina's delightfully tempting underwear without answering.

Xelloss saw the look on Zelgadis' face and rubbed the girl's ass just to tease him into wanting more.

Lina moaned lightly and couldn't help herself from trying to rub up against Xelloss a bit.

The demon smirked at the reaction, "I think that now is a good time to finally start our own private party upstairs." He nibbled up under Lina's jaw, "What do you think?"

The sorceress nodded without hesitation as he continued to lick and kiss her tender neck, but Zelgadis felt he had to be the voice of reason – even though he actually didn't want to.

"We can't just leave when there's a killer running around."

Xelloss shrugged as he continued to lavish attention on the girl in his arms, "Why not? We already agreed that we should go on as if nothing has happened and besides that, I'm not going to let some botched attempt ruin my plans for this evening."

He smiled against the sorceress's cheek and kissed it. "I think Lina agrees with me."

She nodded her head hazily and threw in her opinion to convince Zelgadis, "It's… not like it's the first time we've been in danger- _ah!_" She ended her sentence in a gasp as Xelloss purposefully rubbed his groin against hers a few times while she was still pinned against the pillar.

Zelgadis' half-lidded eyes stared longingly at the sight. He desperately wanted to reach out and cause the girl to cry out as well.

Xelloss put Lina back down on the ground and smirked when she whimpered at the loss of contact.

"I'll tell you what," he walked up slowly to Zelgadis with his eyes open, full of lust, and ran a finger slowly down the chimera's chest. "I'll give you until ten o'clock to excuse yourselves from the ball and come upstairs."

He leaned in close to the young man, just barely leaving a paper thin edge of space between them, "Let's make it your room this time Zelgadis." He trailed the same finger along the chimera's jaw and smiled darkly, "If you're not up there by ten, I'll go ahead and follow through on my plans with you both – regardless of where you might be."

Zelgadis' eyes widened at the threat. Xelloss would certainly have no qualms about stripping them down and having his way with them in the middle of the ballroom.

The demon smirked smugly, "So I'll see you both upstairs soon?"

Zelgadis scowled but nodded slowly, not at all interested in what would happen if they were late.

"Good." He grinned and turned to Lina once more and blew her a kiss before disappearing.

With Xelloss gone, Zelgadis felt he could breathe again. He sighed and turned to Lina, "Any ideas on what we'll say to them?"

The sorceress straightened out her dress and answered, "We're gonna lie through our teeth."

The two of them stayed outside just a few minutes more. Even Zelgadis couldn't go without at least kissing the girl after seeing the display between her and Xelloss.

After carefully adjusting their clothing again, they came back inside and looked for one of their friends.

They spotted Gourry and Sylphiel talking to another couple.

"Just let me do the talking." Lina told the chimera as they walked up to them.

"Do you have an idea?" Zelgadis asked and looked around for a clock of some kind.

She nodded. When they came up to Gourry and Sylphiel, she quickly pulled the swordsman away from the small group to talk to him. There was no time to waste. They weren't sure what time is was and how long they had before Xelloss would show up to follow through on his threat.

"Hey Gourry, Zel and I are going to meet Xelloss and go into town to see if we can't find any info in the taverns on who might have put out a hit on us."

The chimera looked at the girl out of the corner of his eye curiously. Surely, she would know what saying that would do.

Gourry didn't disappoint, "If you're going out, I'll come with you."

Lina shook her head and smiled, "We'll be fine. No one will have expected us to leave the ball."

The swordsman frowned, "But I'm your protector Lina."

She grinned and made a small battle pose. "Come on Gourry. If the assassin failed so miserably in his attempt, you know there's no way he could stand up against me in a fight." She smiled at him encouragingly, "Besides, Zel and Xelloss will be there to watch my back."

Gourry turned to look at Zelgadis, as if sizing him up. He suddenly tilted his head, blinked and smiled, as though he had a thought that he was satisfied with.

Zelgadis raised a curious eyebrow at the blonde and Lina ignored the look on Gourry's face and patted him on the shoulder, pushing through on her plan. "Anyway, you need to stay and keep an eye out. There's a lot more people here that need protecting than I do."

The swordsman nodded in understanding. Curiously, he didn't put up anymore protest and smiled happily at her, "Ok Lina."

The girl nodded and waved as she tugged on Zelgadis' arm as they walked away and said over her shoulder, "Tell everyone else where we went, so they won't worry."

Gourry nodded and waved back. "Sure."

"That was surprisingly easy." Zelgadis said as she let go of his arm and he continued to follow. "I thought for sure, he would argue more than that."

Lina turned back to him as they walked, "I told you to leave the talking to me." She smirked.

As they walked across the ballroom they finally spotted a clock that showed ten till ten and they briskly increased their walk just a bit.

They were just about to reach the door when Pakota caught them.

"Hey guys! Hang on a minute." He called out to them.

Lina and Zelgadis both cringed as the prince made his way over. They were going to be cutting it close to ten o'clock.

They schooled their faces back to normal as Pakota came over to them and Lina tried to expedite whatever it was he wanted to talk about, "Hey, what's up?"

If he noticed they were trying to leave, he didn't say anything about it. If anything, he probably thought they were heading back to the dining hall.

"I want everyone to be sure to be around tomorrow afternoon. I have something for you guys. I was going to wait until you left Taforashia, but with this poisoning, I'd feel better if I went ahead and gave them to you as soon as possible." Pakota said with a little worry.

Even though they were in a hurry, Lina couldn't help but perk up at the mention of being given something. "You have something for us? What is it?"

Pakota rolled his eyes at her sudden interest, "Yeah, but you'll have to wait until tomorrow to find out. If I tell you what it is now, you'll bug me until I give it to you."

Lina smiled and looked even more intrigued. Zelgadis bit his lip, they were running out of time before Xelloss would show up and he didn't think whatever Pakota had would be worth the demon's penalty for being late.

The chimera elbowed her in the back covertly to get her attention. She blinked and remembered that they had someplace to be.

"Right! We'll be sure to make ourselves easy to find tomorrow afternoon then." She smiled and started to back away from the prince and move towards the hallway again. "We'll see you later."

She smiled nervously at the questioning look on Pakota's face as she and Zelgadis continued to move toward the door, "We have someplace to be, Gourry knows what's going on, so ask him about it if you want to know. We don't have time to explain, Xelloss made it pretty clear that he didn't want us to be late."

If anything, Pakota just looked more curious, but since they were already leaving, he couldn't question them. So instead he called out to them the last bit of information he needed to pass on, "Since you're meeting with Xelloss, be sure to tell him to be there too."

Lina waved in acknowledgment as she and Zelgadis left the ballroom.

They walked as fast as they could down the hallway without drawing attention.

"That was great Lina. I'm sure he's going to ask us lots of questions about that tomorrow." Zelgadis scowled as he walked briskly down the hallway.

Lina went on the defensive, "What was I supposed to do? We've only got like five minutes to make it upstairs. I'm sure he'd have way more questions if Xelloss suddenly popped up and started making out with us right in front of him. We can figure out how to deal with everyone else tomorrow."

They reached the end of the hall and their eyes boggled as they saw a clock on the end table there that said two minutes to ten.

Rounding the corner, and therefore out of sight of all the party guests, Lina and Zelgadis broke into a run toward the staircase at the end of the new hallway that would lead up to the guest wing bedrooms.

No matter the games they played with the demon and how much they couldn't deny that they wanted him and each other, neither Lina nor Zel wanted Xelloss to follow through on his earlier threat. They preferred that their secret romance was kept a secret, thank-you-very-much. Not only that, but the humiliation that would come with Xelloss doing what he wanted with them in public wasn't something they looked forward to either.

They hadn't run very far when Lina's shoes caused her to trip and get an up close look at just how shiny the marble floor in the hallway was.

Zelgadis turned back at her yelp. Seeing her splayed out on the floor, he quickly came back to her, picked her up bridal style and took off again.

He bolted up the stairs four at a time and ran down the hall and made it into his room just as the grandfather clock in the guest wing drawing room chimed ten.

Zelgadis slammed the door behind him with his foot and held Lina as he caught his breath.

"My goodness, did you two actually _run_ up here?"

Xelloss was waiting for them as they knew he would be, but he had made some changes to his outfit - or rather, removed some of it.

He was leaning up against the wall near the door they had come through and he was sipping from a glass of wine. His gloves, jacket and cravat were missing and his vest and white shirt were unbuttoned to reveal the smooth, toned skin underneath and the top of his pants were unfastened just enough to be incredibly tempting.

Zelgadis and Lina drank in the sight. The chimera quickly frowned at him when he realized what he'd said, "Don't get the wrong idea Xelloss. We just weren't interested in you molesting us in front of everyone."

Xelloss tilted his head and a giant smile broke out on his face, "But you're interested in me molesting you in private." It was a statement, not a question.

Zelgadis and Lina blushed furiously, "Don't twist my words!" The chimera spat.

The demon laughed, "I wasn't." He placed the wine glass down on a nearby end table and sauntered in close to them while Zelgadis still held Lina in his arms. "You clearly told me you wanted it yourself."

Zelgadis scowled menacingly, "I never said anything like that."

Xelloss ignored his forced outrage and ran a few pointed nails up Lina's spine delicately while focusing his eyes still on Zelgadis, "You know I wasn't referring to your words Zelgadis." He traced his other clawed hand along the chimera's jaw and leaned in tantalizingly close, "Your emotions tell me everything I need to know."

Lina could feel Zelgadis' grip on her tighten as Xelloss leaned over her to kiss the chimera on the lips. His eyes widened in shock and she was only slightly surprised when Zelgadis didn't even try to fight it. She knew first hand that Xelloss' lips were hard to resist.

The priest made sure that Lina knew they hadn't forgotten about her. He continued to stroke up and down her back with his nails as he deepened the kiss with Zelgadis. The chimera finally reciprocated the passionate kiss and his eyes slipped closed in pleasure.

Lina wasn't complaining; she got a front row seat for their hot little make out session.

Zelgadis didn't know why he suddenly wanted to return the deep kiss to the demon. He had done so well at fighting against the urge for so long, and all except the kiss he shared with him in his post climactic bliss the other day, he had been successful.

Maybe it was that Lina was in his arms, maybe it was the failed assassination or maybe it was this latest declaration that Xelloss made that the chimera's emotions told him everything. It wasn't the first time he'd heard it, but something about Xelloss looking that damn sexy while he told him that made it actually stick in Zelgadis' mind this time.

It was like the youth had finally come to grips with what it was he wanted - one of them was in his arms and the other was kissing him passionately.

Even with as strange as their situation was, Zelgadis finally felt as though he might actually be able to allow himself to be happy with them. Even if it turned out that it was for all the wrong reasons.

He knew he must have been as crazy as the demon and the hot headed sorceress, but he couldn't bring himself to give a damn about it anymore. The only thing that mattered to him right then were Lina and Xelloss. The world outside his room didn't exist.

Xelloss slowly pulled away from him to allow Zelgadis some much needed air and kissed and nuzzled his neck affectionately, having felt all of the chimera's emotions.

"I'm glad you've finally come around Zelgadis." Xelloss smiled against the chimera's stony skin between tender kisses.

Zelgadis panted lightly, breath still stolen from the heated kiss, and frowned, "Just don't expect me to jump straight into sex."

Xelloss pulled away from him and smiled, mischief evident in his amethyst eyes, "Now, where would the fun be if you didn't resist just a little bit?"

Even without empathetic abilities, Lina could also tell that something had finally clicked with Zelgadis and he probably wouldn't be as reluctant with Xelloss anymore.

She was excited by the images of Xelloss and a willing Zelgadis that swirled in her head. Most of which were dirty and left her needing more attention than just a caressing hand down her back.

Lina didn't want to break whatever moment was passing between her two lovers but couldn't keep herself from squirming between them to try and feel more contact on her skin.

Xelloss looked down at her and chuckled, "You aren't feeling neglected already are you my dear?"

The sorceress blushed at the endearment he'd only used once at the start of this whole endeavor of theirs. "No… it's just that…"

He covered her lips with his finger, "There's no need to explain." He smiled at her happily and leaned down to kiss her just as passionately as he had with Zelgadis.

As enticing as the sight was, the chimera couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed. "If you're going to kiss her you could at least be the one to hold her Xelloss."

The demon pulled back from the kiss and stepped away from them as he chuckled, "My apologies. I suppose I should let you set her down."

Lina lightly smacked Zelgadis as she climbed out of his arms and stood on her own feet again. "What's with you two and killing moods? Don't either of you know how to keep it romantic?"

Xelloss took her hand and kissed the back of it chivalrously, "I can be as romantic as you like Lina."

She blushed again at the kiss and as he stood before her, she was afforded that sexy view of his flat stomach through his unbuttoned shirt once more. That skin just begged to be touched.

He caught her hand as she reached out to touch him. At her frown he just smiled at her seductively, "Wouldn't you prefer we move to the bed before we continue?"

Lina's face heated up dramatically as she nodded and Xelloss slowly pulled her across the room by the hands he still held onto.

He called out behind her with a smile, "Aren't you coming Zelgadis?"

The chimera's face turned as red as Lina's but he followed them without a word of protest and sat down on the other side of the bed from them.

Xelloss picked up the sorceress and held her legs around his waist as he moved them onto the mattress to sit in the middle and closer to Zelgadis. When he settled them down they were sitting with Lina straddling his lap.

The redhead gasped when she felt the demon's arousal rub up against her.

His exposed chest was so tantalizingly close. She reached her hands out to feel his skin and made a frustrated noise when she realized she still had her evening gloves on.

Xelloss chuckled and slowly pulled off her gloves for her, "They say patience is a virtue."

Zelgadis couldn't help but smirk and add a snarky comment despite Lina's previous scolding about breaking the mood, "What would a demon know about virtue?"

The Mazoku grinned back at him wickedly as he finished taking off Lina's gloves, "I know how to take it."

The chimera's face blanked in shock. He wasn't sure how to react to that particular statement.

Xelloss simply chuckled and turned his attention back to the girl in his lap.

He ran his hands up Lina's outer thighs and kissed her neck right by where her dress circled around it, "Mmm, I certainly do love this dress."

The sorceress smirked as she continued to rub her hands on his chest, "I hoped you would. I had it made with the interests of a demon in mind."

"Is that so?" Xelloss smiled and grazed a fang over her delicate skin, "Well, you did a fantastic job on your choices." He ran his nails along her thighs a little too rough, "Though I must admit, that it creates a bloodlust desire in me."

She gasped at the sting in her thighs and he rubbed the slight injuries carefully with his palms and kissed her face.

Xelloss pulled her skirt up to completely expose her legs and panties and tucked the material into the back of her dress so it wouldn't get in the way. "In fact, I think I want you to keep your dress on for our activities." He smirked and slipped a hand inside her panties to rub her bare ass.

The demon nibbled her shoulder a bit and looked past her to Zelgadis, "You, however, had better find your way out of your clothes before I get my hands on you or else I'll turn them to shreds." He grinned darkly with the promise and his open eyes portrayed that he wasn't kidding.

Zelgadis blushed, "What? You want me to just strip down right now?"

Xelloss giggled, "Well I'd prefer you to do a sexy little striptease, but as long as you get them off, I don't really care all that much."

The chimera scowled at him and crossed his arms still blushing, "Well I'm sure as hell not doing a striptease."

After a while of Zelgadis not moving to take his clothes off in any way, Xelloss whispered something in Lina's ear. She nodded with a blush and a smirk and climbed off his lap and crawled across the bed to her other lover.

Zelgadis looked up at her approach and he was happily surprised when she kissed him with need and began undoing the belt of his outfit that went over the long shirt.

He vaguely remembered to kick off his shoes onto the floor as she unfastened his top garment. She quickly did away with it and took the time to lavish attention on his bare chest, licking and touching it wherever she thought he would enjoy it.

Taking off Zelgadis' shirt was something she could do easily, but when she reached for the edge of his pants, she hesitated and her hands got a little shaky.

Xelloss noticed her hesitation and moved up right behind her as she was on her hands and knees on the bed in front of Zelgadis.

He teasingly rubbed his clothed arousal against her barely covered nether regions while he played with the edges of her panties. "If you finish what I told you to, I'll take these off for you." He tugged down her underwear ever so slightly.

She whimpered and tried to back up into him to feel more contact and he moved away from her just enough. She whined, frustrated, "You are such a fucking tease, Xelloss."

He chuckled, "Did you really expect me to be anything else?"

Zelgadis had been running his hand through Lina's bangs as the rest of her hair was still neatly tied up. He placed one of his hands over hers on his stomach and kissed her, wanting her attention back on him for the moment.

Zelgadis lowered her hand to the edge of his pants again and they blushed madly, but they both wanted the rest of his clothing off.

Lina's still shaky hands unfastened Zel's pants and slid them and his underwear down as much as she could while he was still sitting on the mattress.

She hesitantly touched his exposed erection and he moaned and kissed her more deeply.

The redhead broke the kiss to look heatedly at the body part she'd seen only once before. Up to this point, Zelgadis was the only man she'd clearly seen for any prolonged period of time.

There had been a mortifyingly embarrassing accident where she had stumbled upon Gourry during a 'private moment' in the middle of the night while they were out on the road camping. They'd also occasionally run into a drunk flasher, who would end up spending more time putting out a burning coat or cloak than he did actually flashing them.

Lina wrapped her fingers around his cock and stroked it slowly, eliciting a groan from him. The other day, she'd put her mouth on the organ but she hadn't gotten to touch it yet. It was rock hard and ever so slightly rough, just like the rest of his skin, and just like the rest of his skin, it had a few river rock smooth stones gracing it.

She ran her fingers over the stones curiously and blushed harder, she wasn't sure, but she thought his overall piece would feel incredibly stimulating inside of her. It was probably the kind of thing other women dreamed about.

Zelgadis moaned and wrapped one of his hands around hers, making her to tighten her grip and pump him harder.

Before they could really get too into it, Xelloss tugged on her panties again, reminding her that she still had to finish getting Zelgadis out of his pants.

She bit her lip and started pulling on the edge of the chimera's pants with her other hand once again and slowly tried to free the one around his cock from his grasp.

Zelgadis realized what she was trying to do and released her hand and helped her in getting rid of the last of his clothing. They were eventually tossed to the floor, completely forgotten.

He kissed her passionately once more, and with her mission complete, Xelloss rewarded her by finally slipping her panties down to her knees and exposing her to him.

Lina's womanhood was already dripping wet. Xelloss had a perfect view of it and her smooth and shapely ass as she was still on her hands and knees kissing Zelgadis.

Xelloss ran a clawed finger in between her sensitive thighs and kissed one of her perfect cheeks before pushing his finger into her wet opening.

She let out a strangled moan into Zelgadis' mouth and whimpered as Xelloss' fingers pleasantly tortured her.

The scents she gave off were so excruciatingly tempting. Xelloss simply had to taste her.

He pulled his hand away from her and before she could make a noise in protest, he pulled her away from her kiss with Zelgadis and flipped her over to lie on her back on the mattress and tugged her panties the rest of the way off.

"Xelloss. What-_ah!_" She was interrupted as he replaced his fingers inside her and began kissing his way up her inner thigh.

He stopped long enough in his ascent to nibble at the sensitive juncture between her thigh and pelvis. She whimpered and reached out to run her fingers through his hair that was still tied back, knowing what he was planning on from the few sex talks she'd shared with other girls in the past.

When Xelloss replaced his fingers with his tongue inside her, Lina almost screamed as she arched her back and her other hand searched around frantically for contact with Zelgadis.

The chimera grabbed her hand and kissed it, smiling at Lina's virginal reaction. The pheromones she was giving off while Xelloss pleasured her with his tongue and fingers were so incredibly arousing just by themselves.

Zelgadis was tempted to stroke himself as he watched them, but somehow managed to keep his hands off himself. Instead he kept them busy by holding onto Lina's hand with one and stroking her hair comfortingly with the other.

Lina instinctively spread her legs as far as she could to give Xelloss as much access to her as possible. After a while, he sucked on her clit and pumped into her a little harder with his fingers and it was the beginning of her end.

When she arched her back even more and started to give short screams, Zelgadis leaned over to silence her with a kiss but was stopped short as Xelloss got his attention by grabbing hold of his ankle with his free hand. The demon gave him a warning look from where he continued to pleasure the girl, clearly letting him know it was in the chimera's best interest to let Lina vocalize her orgasm.

Just as soon as he'd given Zelgadis his warning look, Xelloss felt Lina clench around his fingers and she screamed out, "_X-X-Xellossss!_" quite loudly as she came.

The demon's lips curved into a smug smile against her as he continued to pleasure her while she rode out her climax.

Her powerful orgasm eventually faded and Lina became far too sensitive to be touched and she squirmed, trying to get away from the demon's fingers and mouth.

Xelloss chuckled and pulled away from her mercifully. He could torture her that way some other time.

His demon eyes were filled with unbridled lust as he moved up to lay partially on top of her, "Mmm, your juices taste even better than your emotions Lina." He seductively licked his lips that were still covered in her fluids, "Would you care to taste them?"

Lina was still panting heavily and her brain was still too fried to even make a response of any kind but she eagerly accepted his kiss and licked at the taste of herself on his lips.

Xelloss chuckled and pulled away from her, rising to his knees and leaving her to lie out on the bed to recover. "No need to be greedy. We want to leave some for Zelgadis."

He grinned, darkly seductive at the chimera, his hand and chin still dripping with the proof of Lina's pleasure. There was so much of it that some had even traveled down Xelloss' neck. She was apparently the type of girl who produced lots of lubrication when she came, and her lovers couldn't be happier with that.

Xelloss reached up with his wet hand to brush Zelgadis' lips as he closed in on him, "Taste her. I know you'll agree with me that she's positively delicious."

The chimera could feel his eyes trying to roll back in his head as he smelled the powerful scent of Lina's pheromones on Xelloss' fingers and he opened his mouth and sucked on them without a second thought.

The demon closed in on him and slowly pushed him up against the pillows that were propped up at the head of the bed. When he was satisfied with Zelgadis' new position he removed his fingers and replaced them with his mouth.

The chimera couldn't control himself and he roughly grabbed both sides of Xelloss' face as he devoured his mouth, trying to find every drop of Lina that was still left on him.

The priest laughed lightly when Zelgadis was no longer satisfied with his mouth and broke away to start licking up the fluids off his chin and neck.

The chimera actually growled at his laughter and bit his neck and Xelloss had to stifle a moan at the surprising reaction.

It seemed as though Zelgadis' brau demon was begging to come out to play. If that were the case, Xelloss was more than happy to oblige.

The Mazoku dug his nails into Zelgadis' hips easily and rocked his own clothed erection against the chimera's exposed one.

Zelgadis moaned and renewed his own efforts. He pushed Xelloss back onto the mattress and pinned his hands together in one hand above his head, knowing full well, that the demon could break free easily if he wanted to.

Xelloss happily allowed the youth to take the dominant role for the time being and didn't even mind at all that his plans for the chimera that night were being altered a bit.

Lina watched in post climactic euphoria as Zelgadis roughly kissed Xelloss on the lips again and slowly dragged his blunt nails down the priest's exposed chest, leaving scratches and small bruises from his incredibly strong, stony fingers.

Xelloss moaned and then giggled lightly, he could feel the effects of Lina's orgasm starting to slowly slip into his mind.

Zelgadis didn't care for his giggling and growled at him again in warning and bit his lip and they both moaned in pleasure.

The chimera could no longer hold on to the urge to finally see what the demon had kept secret from them.

He tried to undo the rest of the buttons keeping Xelloss' pants together, holding onto his runaway desire just enough to not rip them off of him. His suit did look fairly expensive and even in his lust fueled mind, Zelgadis was pretty sure he would punish him for any damages to it later.

Xelloss giggled again as the youth fumbled with the fasteners, and smirked at him, "Would you like me to do that Zelgadis?"

The chimera frowned and bit back another growl but released Xelloss' hands and moved off of him to give him some room.

Xelloss smirked and moved up to sit up on his knees to give both of his lovers a better view of what it was they wanted to see.

Lina had recovered enough to sit up on the bed. Her dress untucked itself and it fell back down around her to hang as it was designed to once more.

The priest undid his pants painfully slow. When they were finally unclasped all the way, he pulled out his cock and stroked himself slowly a few times just to excite them.

They were completely unsurprised that he wasn't wearing any underwear and although they knew his physical body wasn't truly real, it didn't matter at all. It looked and felt real enough; that was certainly good enough for them.

Xelloss' manhood was a bit bigger than Zelgadis', but since he could change his form at will, they knew he could be whatever size he wanted.

The demon grinned at the lusty expressions on their faces as they stared at him before Zelgadis was brought back into the present and reached out to touch his cock.

The demon purred in delight as Zelgadis stroked him and he once again allowed the youth to take the dominant role.

He was actually surprised though, when Zelgadis suddenly pulled him into his lap and squeezed his ass with both of his hands, forcing him to straddle the chimera.

Xelloss hadn't expected him to take such an initiative yet. However, the look on the chimera's face and the sounds he made as he ran his fangs and tongue along the wound he'd previously made in Xelloss' neck reminded the priest that the beast within Zelgadis seemed to be calling the shots for the moment.

He was just fine with that, and as the other man gripped his fingers into his hips delightfully painfully, Xelloss reached down between them to take both of their erections in one hand and stroke them.

They both moaned in pleasure and Lina was becoming hot and bothered again from watching them.

Zelgadis' grip on Xelloss' hips deepened as he moved the demon up and down in his lap to create more friction between their cocks and grazed his fangs along Xelloss' neck where his jugular should have been if he were human.

The priest tilted his head back to give Zelgadis better access and moved his free hand around the chimera's back to make deep scratches down it with his claws.

The chimera growled out a moan and quickly changed their positions so that he was lying on top of the demon on the mattress, uncaring that he was using his full weight.

Similarly, Xelloss was no longer satisfied with playing the submissive role as their activities became more heated. He quickly and effortlessly reversed their positions to lie on top of Zelgadis and bite into his shoulder.

They rolled around on the bed for a few minutes, each fighting for dominance, until Xelloss came close to losing the last of his carefully harnessed control.

He was able to get behind Zelgadis and pin his arms behind his back with one hand. He spooned him from behind as they both lay on their sides and reached around them to continue pumping Zelgadis' cock with his other hand, all within full view of Lina's glazed eyes.

Zelgadis growled and struggled to break free so he could try and take back the dominant position again. After realizing that Xelloss iron grip wouldn't break he relented and rocked his hips in time with the demon's strokes instead.

When the pleasure driven chimera realized just how close Xelloss' hard shaft was to his naked backside, he tried to back up to rub against it.

Xelloss groaned and bit his lip when his cock rubbed up between Zelgadis' cheeks, so temptingly close to something better. His nails dug into the chimera's arms painfully as he bit into his shoulder again and pumped him hard, barely holding on to the very last shreds of his self control.

Zelgadis craned his head back, narrowly avoiding hitting Xelloss in the face with his needle hair as the demon was still biting his shoulder. He moaned loudly before yelling out his release, completely uncaring who might hear him.

Lina watched with a heavy blush as Xelloss continued to pump him hard, not even slowing in his motions until Zelgadis had stopped coming and the chimera slumped on the bed, completely spent.

Xelloss moved his semen covered hand to place it on Zelgadis' stomach to hold him in a half embrace from behind while he moved to rest his forehead on the youth's back.

The priest refused to move an inch more until he was certain he could completely reestablish his control.

Zelgadis was still panting heavily and off in his own little world as Lina moved up to them and kissed him on the cheek. She was about to reach behind him to run her fingers through Xelloss' hair when she was stopped dead in her tracks as he looked up at her and she saw the chaotic look in his eyes.

"Lina – You mustn't touch me right now." Xelloss told her warningly and couldn't stop himself from digging his nails into Zelgadis' stomach.

The chimera groaned at the sting and Xelloss quickly retracted himself from the man, scooting away from Zelgadis to keep himself from accidentally instigating anything more until he could reign in his demonic lust.

The priest reached up to run his hands through his hair to calm himself and that proved to be a mistake. His one hand was still covered in Zelgadis' seed and his eyes flashed and he whimpered as he could feel his control slipping farther away and he licked his hand clean with unhidden need and desire.

Lina was getting a little worried for him, "Xelloss… are you going to be ok?"

This was the one problem with human lovers; he had to keep his strength and demonic lust in check. If he didn't, he ran the risk of hurting them beyond a healing spell's repair.

Xelloss breathed deeply, despite not needing air. He felt it aided him in clearing his mind at least. "I'll be fine. I just need a few more moments."

Zelgadis was finally coming out of his stupor and rolled over to look at the demon and was shocked by the barely in control priest that he saw.

He bit his lip worryingly, "Is this because of me?" He frowned and blushed darkly at remembering his actions, "I… I'm sorry. I don't even know what got into me."

Xelloss tried his best to smile at him through his ongoing inner battle, "Don't worry." His slitted pupils were beginning to dilate. "It was just your demonic side wanting attention."

Zelgadis moved his hand to touch his face and the priest's chaotic eyes widened and he scooted out of his reach.

Zelgadis and Lina both looked worried, "Why won't you let us touch you?"

One of Xelloss' hands twisted up in the blanket and he unconsciously started to shred it with his nails. He was beginning to lose control over his facial expressions because of the effects their climaxes caused in him.

He took on a look of barely concealed worry, "I fear that if you did touch me right now, I would be unable to control myself in fulfilling my desires."

Lina blushed madly but didn't hesitate in telling him, "That's fine Xelloss, you gave both of us pleasure, let us give you some."

The demon shook his head and bit his thumbnail, something they'd never seen him do, "It's not that simple. If I completely lose control of myself I could easily kill even Zelgadis by accident."

Lina and Zelgadis eyes widened. The redhead noticed his uncharacteristic fidgeting and remembered his strange behavior the last time he'd pleasured them. "Is a part of how you're feeling because… our emotions from coming are messing with your head?"

Xelloss looked at them, his eyes fully dilated and a confused look on his face. "It would seem so."

Zelgadis asked him, "Is that normal for Mazoku?"

The demon shook his head, a frown on his face that looked disturbingly cute with the overly expressive eyes he currently had, "No, it's not. I've never had this happened before. I thought when this happened the other day, it may have been a fluke. Even Zelas-sama has never seen anything like it."

Lina blushed but had an idea, "Is it because there's two of us and we're human?"

Xelloss gave them a very wide, perverted smile, "In all my centuries, you don't think that this is the first time I've had a ménage à trois with humans do you?" He seemed to have regained enough control over himself to make dirty comments at least.

Lina and Zelgadis blushed furiously and Xelloss could sense their emotions even through his off kilter state of mind.

He continued to grin, "There's no need to feel jealous. The last time was probably about sixty years ago."

They both scowled at him but said nothing on the subject. Instead, Lina brought them back to the topic at hand, "So you don't know why you're acting strange?"

Xelloss shook his head cutely, "Nope."

Zelgadis raised a curious eyebrow at the out of character way he said that and Lina asked, "Do you think you've gotten control of yourself enough yet?"

He smiled at her brightly, "Why? Do you want to cuddle Lina-chan?"

Lina tilted her head to the side slightly. He seemed to be acting just as weird as the other day at least. She supposed that was a step up from biting his thumbnail in worry.

"Actually, I was thinking we could do something for you. If you felt like you could keep your cool enough."

Xelloss' eyebrows creased and he looked far away as he thought for a moment, "I don't think that would be a good idea just yet."

Lina pouted, "Well _can_ we cuddle at least?"

The demon's face brightened up dramatically and he smiled like the sun, "I think I can do at least that now."

The redhead started to crawl between them but Zelgadis stopped her. "Don't you think we should get cleaned up a little first?" He gestured to their various states of disarray. The comforter on his bed would probably need to be burnt. It had Lina's and his cum all over it and small amount of demon and chimera blood on it too. Not to mention that Xelloss' nails were still digging into it, shredding it even more.

Lina smirked, "Yeah, I guess that probably wouldn't hurt." And moved to get off the bed and head toward the bathroom instead.

She cleaned herself up and when she came back, she saw that her lovers had moved off the bed and had removed the destroyed comforter and tossed it to the floor.

Zelgadis had wrapped a sheet around his waist, still a little too shy to just walk around naked, and Xelloss had tucked himself back into his pants.

The chimera stopped and kissed her on the forehead as he passed by her to clean himself up.

When Lina got closer to Xelloss, she could clearly see that his physical form was still completely aroused, even though his pants were once again fastened.

"Are you sure you'll be alright?" She asked, gesturing to his obvious erection.

Xelloss smiled happily and bent down to cover her face in lots of little kisses. "Don't worry."

Lina huffed and bit her lip, "Fine, but next time we're going to do whatever is necessary so that you can enjoy yourself too. Alright?"

The demon thought she was ridiculously adorable with how thoughtful she was being of his condition and continued to shower her with kisses.

She managed to get him to stop and look her straight on. She tilted her head at the completely out of his mind look he had in his eyes, but tried to ignore it for now in order to drive her point home. "I mean it Xelloss. This is the second time we've done stuff and you haven't let yourself cum yet."

The demon smiled happily and kissed her on the nose. "Alright Lina-chan, whatever you want."

Lina sighed but nodded, it was the best she would get out of him for the moment. They really needed to figure out what was up with the way he was acting.

Zelgadis came out of the bathroom. He was cleaned up, his wounds were already healed with Recovery and his sheet was still wrapped around him. "We should probably go ahead and get ready for bed."

Xelloss pouted, "You're not going to put on your sleepwear are you?"

The chimera smirked, "Wouldn't we be too tempting for you if we were to sleep naked?"

The demon tapped his chin in thought for a moment and searched around inside his head, trying to gauge how he felt and how much control of himself he thought he'd regained. "Hmm. I think it should be fine as long as we don't initiate any new exploits until after my mind returns to normal."

Lina asked, "How long does that take?"

"Last time it took about an hour, but I only have that one time to judge by."Xelloss shrugged with a cockeyed smirk.

Zelgadis looked at him up and down as if judging him, "Fine… but I'm keeping the sheet."

That was good enough for Xelloss and he smiled widely and asked Lina, "What do you plan to do?"

Lina thought about it for a moment and shrugged, "May as well I guess."

She sat down on the edge of the bed by the nightstand and removed the shoes she'd yet to take off. She kept Xelloss' necklace on but took off the rest of her jewelry and placed it on the nightstand and crawled into bed and under the sheets before removing her dress and tossing it over to the pile of Zel's clothes on the floor.

Zelgadis came over and sat down on the bed as well, "Aren't you going to let your hair out?"

"Nah, it's fine for now. I took the clip out at least."

Xelloss grinned maniacally, "I suppose I should get cleaned up as well." He said just before vanishing and reappearing just as instantly, this time completely clean and wearing only his usual black baggy pants.

Lina was a little disappointed to see that he wasn't going to be sleeping nude as well, but figured it was for the best if he was to remain in control of himself.

The demon crawled up behind her and gave her a spooning hug for a moment before he rolled them over so she was on the outside, "Sorry, but you're not sleeping in the middle tonight."

Lina huffed indignantly and gave him an open handed, light smack on the arm. "It's not like I toss in my sleep _every _night."

Zelgadis chuckled, "Amelia would probably argue with you about that." He lay down on his side close by Xelloss.

The demon happily cuddled Lina in his right arm as he lay on his back and held out his other arm in an offering pose to Zelgadis. He had an adorable and out of place look on his face as he asked him, "Do you want to cuddle with us Zel-kun?"

Zelgadis raised an eyebrow and was about to protest that his hair would poke the demon when he remembered their conversation over Lina's sleeping form early that morning.

He thought about it for a long moment as he looked at Xelloss and Lina's expectant faces and finally his shoulders slumped and he picked up a pillow and placed it on the demon's left shoulder and chest and moved over to rest his head on it.

Lina smiled happily when Zelgadis moved over to join them and she moved her head over the few inches across Xelloss' chest to reward the chimera with a kiss.

Xelloss wrapped his left arm around the young man and a ridiculously huge smile graced his face as he embraced both of his lovers.

* * *

><p>AN<p>

Sorry! No full on sex just yet! Please don't kill me! Hopefully the incredibly graphic and detailed foreplay and oral sex was good enough for you ^_-

There's a link to a pic I drew of Zel/Xel from this chapter in my profile. It's of Xel straddling naked Zel's lap :3 It's just line art but you should go see it!

Now that the 'Ballroom Blitz' chapters are over, did anyone catch the reference to the classic rock song by the same name? :D You get bonus points in the nonexistent game of RC if you noticed it! Lol

Could you just imagine them jamming out to that song? Lol Well… Xelloss and Lina would be rocking out while Zel stood in the corner and tapped his foot and bobbed his head while he thought no one was looking.

The version of 'Ballroom Blitz' that I'm talking about is the original one by 'Sweet' (the not remixed one) At least I"m pretty sure that it's the original- its the version they always play on the classic rock radio. Lots of people cover that song. The Wayne's World movie did a good cover of it with the girl singer.

Was that a vulnerable Xelloss? *Squints eyes and tilts head to the side* I think it might have been there for a minute.

The kind of dog Xelloss envisioned Amelia as is supposed to be a Scottish terrier. But there is no Scotland in the Red World, so I just left it as 'terrier'.

If you're wondering where I got Sineptimus Serpent's venom from, it came totally off the top of my head. So if the name sounds like something else you've heard of before, that's totally accidental.

Please review! :D


	10. Gifts with a Price

Giggling mad Xelloss is so cute :3

* * *

><p>Lina awoke to the comforting feeling of a hand stroking up and down her back.<p>

When she opened her eyes, she was immediately greeted by Zelgadis' still sleeping face lit by early morning light only inches away from her.

He looked serenely peaceful as he laid there, the worries of the day leaving him alone in his dreams for once.

Becoming more awake, Lina realized that her back was still being caressed. She looked up to see Xelloss completely lost in thought and staring off into space at the ceiling. Even with his sharp senses, he hadn't realized she was awake yet.

She could see that the demon was stroking Zelgadis' back comfortingly as well, which would contribute to the calm look on the chimera's face.

Lina was trying to figure out if the priest was acting strangely again, or if she'd caught him in the kind of moment he had when he was alone.

After a little bit, she decided to gain his attention, "Did you stay awake all night?"

Xelloss' hand stilled and he glanced down at her. She could see the melancholy in his eyes for a brief instance before he switched back to his usual cheer.

He resumed his hand's movement on her skin, "I was asleep for a little bit."

"What woke you up? I didn't punch you again did I?"

The priest chuckled, "No. You've stayed thankfully still the whole night through." His smile abated a fraction, "Actually, I woke up from a dream I did not care to continue."

The red head looked intrigued, "I didn't know Mazoku could dream."

"Until a few days ago, you didn't realize we could sleep, so not knowing we dreamt is unsurprising."

Lina rolled her eyes, "You know what I mean." Her face suddenly sported a playful grin, "I guess if humans have weird dreams, thousand year old demons ought to have some really crazy ones."

He smirked at her, "I don't make it a habit to sleep very often, but yes, there can be some very strange dreams. Though you might be more surprised at how 'normal' many of them are."

Lina's expression turned inquisitive once again, "So what did you dream about?"

The priest was silent for a moment as he debated on telling her what he dreamt of or not. Eventually he told her "That's a secret." With a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

She ignored his irritating catchphrase, instead noticing that she'd seen the same melancholic look he had on humans before and figured it was worth asking. "Did you have a nightmare?"

Xelloss' eyebrow rose marginally at her unexpected insight, "I suppose I'm no longer doing a very good job as keeper of secrets if you can read me so easily."

Lina shrugged, "It's not like that one was that hard to figure out."

"…I suppose not."

"Anyway," She moved her arm so she could prop her head up with her hand, "Talking about bad dreams makes humans feel better. You can tell me about it if you want." She smiled at him encouragingly.

Xelloss smirked at her, "Are you sure you just don't want me to tell you just to satisfy your curiosity?"

She huffed, "Fine then. Don't tell me." She had been very interested about what he could have dreamt but she honestly did want to help him feel better too. Even if that was just the byproduct of getting him to talk about it.

The priest's sight moved back up toward the ceiling again. After a few silent moments he said in an even voice, "I dreamt of what would have happened last night if I hadn't been there."

Lina's eyebrows shot up behind her bangs, "You're not… upset by that poisoning attempt are you?"

Xelloss looked back down and pinned her gaze with his own, "I was not joking last night when I told you I would have caused a massacre if either of you were killed." The steady look in his open lavender eyes told her that he really was serious. He probably would have killed every last person in the country of Taforashia if it had meant he would have killed their murderer.

The sorceress' eyes widened at his completely unexpected conviction. "Why do you care Xelloss? As humans, Zel and I will die eventually anyway."

The demon's cocky smile easily returned to him, "My reasons are my own."

Lina sighed in irritation at his secrecy, "I hope you know that you're annoying."

He just continued to smile obnoxiously, "Nightmares are irrelevant. I have faith that neither of you will succumb to death for many years yet. Which will allow me to continue to enjoy your entertaining company."

She almost burst out laughing but kept her voice down to not disturb the sleeping chimera, "Faith? Come on Xelloss, despite you being decent at making the average human think otherwise, we both know you're not that kind of priest."

Xelloss pretended to sulk, "'Decent'? Are you trying to hint that I need an appearance change?"

Lina grinned, "Well it wouldn't hurt to change up your outfit. When was the last time your every day clothing was anything different?"

The demon actually had to stop and think for a long moment before answering. In an almost dismal way he said, "I can't recall."

"Well, that _has_ been a while. You might want to think about changing it up a bit then." She smiled at him with a small blush, "I definitely liked what you were wearing last night. Though I guess you can't wear that every day."

Xelloss grinned, "Yes, that might be a bit odd to travel in."

"At the very least, you should wear your hair tied back like that more often." She told him.

He smirked knowingly, "Do you like it that way?"

Lina nodded her head with the pinkness still tinting her cheeks, "I think your hair tied back looks really good on you."

"Do you people have to talk while I'm trying to sleep?"

Lina and Xelloss looked to Zelgadis, each a little surprised to hear his voice.

"Sorry Zel." Lina told him only slightly apologetically and patted his upper arm.

He made a grumbling sound and shoved his face into his pillow that was still on Xelloss' shoulder.

The chimera seemed to gradually remember where he'd fallen asleep as his hand moved along the priest's chest when he grabbed onto his pillow.

Zelgadis slowly raised his head and opened his eyes finally to see Xelloss and Lina's faces much closer to his than his waking brain was comfortable with. He blushed darkly and buried himself back into his pillow and muttered something about coffee.

Lina caught a brief glance of the idea forming in Xelloss' head, followed by a smirk and the demon suddenly disappearing out from under the barely awake chimera without a word.

Since she had already propped herself up on her elbow, Lina wasn't directly affected by the priest's spontaneous departure but Zelgadis fell the short distance to the mattress without the presence of his big warm pillow.

"What the hell Xelloss?" The barely awake, cranky chimera lifted his head up from the pillow again to look around the room for where the obnoxious demon had gone to.

The priest had quickly reappeared, fully dress in his usual garb, and as Lina noted, with his hair tied back. In his hands were two cups of what could only be coffee.

Zelgadis forgot to be irritated with Xelloss as he quickly sat up in bed and took one of the mugs from him and began drinking the addictive caffeinated liquid.

The Mazoku chuckled and handed the other cup to Lina, who took it and actually remembered to say 'Thank you'.

When their beverages were finished, Lina was returned to her room by Xelloss. After which the demon disappeared again, but not before being told Pakota's message.

He told her he'd be sure to stay easy to find all day and possibly see them again as soon as breakfast. He might be required to test food for poison again after all, much to his annoyance, but with any luck, the prince should have seen to those matters already.

* * *

><p>Everyone was satisfied to find that security had been stepped up since the night before and only long trusted people were allowed in the palace until the threat was taken care of.<p>

That being the case, breakfast was quickly eaten and Lina and Zelgadis were fast to make themselves scarce to avoid having to answer questions about their early departure from the ball.

Zelgadis would have preferred to have started working on tracking down who could have put a hit out on them and which one of them it was actually for. However, since he hadn't seen Pakota since the ball to ask what time they were supposed to meet, he thought it was best to stay in the palace for the time being.

So he spent several hours in the extensive palace library instead, looking up the effects of various kinds of poisons just in case of future attempts.

He wore the outfit Lina had given him, deciding to make it his usual clothing until the summer months were over. The sleeveless tunic was much better to wear than a long sleeved shirt in the warmth of the day and he didn't need to really worry about sunburns anyway.

The chimera had been there most of the morning with several open books piled around him on the antique table. He found some very useful information, but the book currently in hand was proving to be anything but.

Getting back up to search the shelves for a better one, he suddenly felt the displacement of air behind him and was unsurprised when he felt a body lean up close behind him and arms wrap around his front.

"You look like you could use a break."

Zelgadis' eye twitched, "You've got to stop just suddenly appearing Xelloss." He pried the demon's arms off him and continued to look through the shelves.

Xelloss let him walk away from his embrace and smirked, "Am I becoming predictable?"

The youth picked up a book and flipped through it, "I'd have to say yes."

The priest chuckled, "Maybe I should use the door next time and actually knock."

Zelgadis only paid him half a mind as he continued flipping through the new volume in his hands and started walking back to his seat, not even glancing at him, "That would definitely be different."

Xelloss didn't like being ignored. He snatched the book right out of Zelgadis' hands and flung it behind him carelessly.

"What the hell-?" Zelgadis anger was cut short when the demon quickly closed in on him and forced him back up against the table.

His heart leapt into his throat and he began to feel mild panic when the priest pushed him back to sit on the edge and moved himself between the chimera's legs. He bent over him so far that Zelgadis had to lean back and use his arms for support or else fall onto the table top on his back.

The chimera blushed furiously but before he could remember how to speak, a dark grin appeared on Xelloss' face, "I have something to discuss with you and I would appreciate it if I had your undivided attention."

Zelgadis managed to beat down his previous emotions and turn it back into anger. He gave Xelloss a nasty glare, "You could have just asked for my attention."

A mischievous twinkle sparkled behind lavender eyes, "But this is much more fun."

The chimera glowered and did his best not to punch the demon in the face. He'd like that too much. "Well, what the hell did you want?"

Xelloss smiled lecherously and grabbed the chimera's hip with one of his hands, "After our activities last night, I thought it was time to tell you of one simple rule I have for you Zelgadis."

The chimera raised an eyebrow in suspicion and tried his best to ignore Xelloss' moving hand and how close his body and face was to him. "What kind of rule?"

The priest's eyes were open with lust and his lips were painfully near the youth's when he told him, "You may pleasure Lina when I'm not around but I must insist that I be the one to claim her virginity."

Zelgadis blushed madly, whatever he thought Xelloss wanted to talk about, that wasn't it, "What?"

He smirked, but being so close to Zelgaids' face, the chimera didn't see it, "As a demon, I'm afraid that claiming innocence is just one of those vices I have."

Zelgadis scowled and tried to move away from Xelloss in the limited space he had, but only managed to back himself lower onto the table, "Who are you to decide? That sort of thing should be left up to Lina."

Xelloss smile turned a shade darker just before he used his staff that was still in hand to knock Zelgadis' arms out from under him. As soon as the chimera fell onto his back, the demon dropped his staff on the table and pinned him down by his shoulders.

Zelgadis struggled for a moment before Xelloss leaned over him and kissed him deeply and bit his lip. He moaned and quickly quit fighting back altogether. Instead, he roughly grabbed onto the front of Xelloss' cloak and tried to take control of the kiss, which was painfully obvious the demon wasn't going to allow him to do.

He'd almost forgotten what they were even talking about until Xelloss broke the kiss and reminded him, "I've wanted you both far longer than you have realized you wanted the same things. I will be the first one to claim Lina and the night I do I'll claim your virgin ass as well." He said hotly against the chimera's lips as he squeezed his backside and rubbed his clothed arousal against Zelgadis' a few times for emphasis.

Zelgadis blush was incredibly dark as he tried his best to glare at the demon, "For your information, I've had sex before."

Xelloss just grinned calculatingly, "I know you've been with a woman or two before you were transformed Zelgadis, but I also know you've never been with a male before."

The chimera scowled with a still heavy blush and did his best to ignore the fact that Xelloss was still rubbing up against him and squeezing his rear pleasurably, "Well I told you myself at the beginning of all this that I'd never even mentioned to anyone my interest in men. I'm guessing you know of my experience with women from the same way you knew of my preferences."

Xelloss smirked at him arrogantly and ignored the question the chimera already knew the answer to.

If the demon was making this rule about Lina, Zelgadis felt it was time to express something of his own.

From where he lay pinned underneath the stronger man, the chimera wasn't left with many options on how to show any sign of dominance, so he did the only thing he could and reached up with one hand to yank a lock of the priest's hair that was left out of the low ponytail he still wore as hard as he dared and defiantly told him, "While we're making a few things clear - you better not be expecting me to bottom every time Xelloss."

The demon gasped at the unexpected pain and smiled perversely. He said in a sultry voice, "Not at all. In fact, I'm looking as forward to you screwing me with that unique, rock hard cock of yours as I am to fucking that tight ass."

The chimera's face reddened further and his eyes went half lidded and Xelloss knew exactly what was happening. He chuckled, "Oh? What's this? Could it be that dirty talk turns you on Zelgadis?" The Mazoku fondled his very noticeable erection through the front of his pants.

The younger moaned but still managed to scowl at him and yank his hair again but didn't say anything to try and convince the priest otherwise.

Xelloss groaned as his hair was pulled once more but kept up the banter, "I'd wager that Lina likes filthy talk too." He smirked, "You should test that out later."

Zelgadis didn't say anything to that effect but did make a mental note about it.

Returning to the other topic, Xelloss licked his neck and told him, "Personally, I'm glad you didn't fully realize your preferences sooner. It leaves me with much more of a coveted prize."

Zelgadis forced himself to stop enjoying the demon's touch and tried again to push him away, "So what? You only want us because of our inexperience?"

The priest pinned his shoulders down again to keep him from moving, "On the contrary, I would still desire you both even if you'd had dozens of former lovers of either gender." He grinned and nibbled the chimera's elfin ear, "Your innocence simply makes you that much more impossible to resist."

The chimera shut his eyes tightly and clenched his mouth shut, trying his best not to satisfy Xelloss with the whimper he so desperately felt might slip; his ears were far too sensitive.

He felt his heart try to beat its way out of his chest with what the demon whispered in that same sensitive ear, "In fact, I'm very… _very_ tempted to claim you right here among all your precious literature Zelgadis… Does that sound appealing to you?"

That sounded _incredibly_ appealing to Zelgadis. Sex among piles of books was one of his secret fantasies, though it wasn't necessarily how he had envisioned a first time with someone. Aside from that, he didn't want to favor Xelloss with any kind of affirmative answer – well… verbal answer anyway. There was nothing he could do to hide his emotions from the empath.

Xelloss smirked and moved to heatedly claim the chimera's lips again before pulling completely away from him, standing up straight and making a mock frown, "My, but it's such a shame I've already made plans concerning how I'll first take you both."

When Zelgadis' hazy eyes suddenly turned outraged, Xelloss' smirk returned full force right before he got hit in the head with a book.

The demon just laughed and was rewarded by Zelgadis sitting up and grabbing him roughly by the front of his cloak and smacking him upside the face with another book, leaving an imprint of the front cover on the priest's cheek.

"You're such a fucking tease!" The chimera repeated Lina's words from the previous night as he continued to brain the irritating demon with the book in hand. After all, he'd actually enjoy being punched by the chimera.

Xelloss smiled mischievously as he caught Zelgadis' arm, completely uncaring about the book imprints on his face, "Besides that, you're about to have a guest anyway."

The chimera blinked in confusion but before he could ask what he was talking about, there was a knock on the library door and Xelloss had vanished.

Zelgadis had just enough time to get off the table, stumble, fall in a heap on the floor, pick himself up and sit in a nearby chair before the door was opened to reveal Amelia.

Thankfully, sitting at the table hid the evidence of his arousal but as soon as she saw him, the princess tilted her head to the side and stared at him strangely.

"Zelgadis-san, why is there a book stuck in your hair?"

The chimera's eyes widened and he reached up to find that there was a small, thin book impaled on his wire strands. He grumbled and pulled it free and tossed it on the table, promising himself he'd remove the needle hair sticking out of it later.

He completely ignored her question and asked one of his own in as polite a voice as he could possibly manage, "Why are you here Amelia?"

Whatever strange event had happened before she got there, she could tell he wasn't in the mood to humor her query.

"Um… I just came to tell you that Pakota-san asked me to get you and meet him and the others in the main hall."

Zelgadis inwardly cringed. He was going to need a few minutes to calm his body down before he could make an appearance in front of others. "I'll be down in a minute. Let me just put these books away."

She nodded hesitantly and turned to leave, figuring he must just be in a gruff mood because of the incident at the ball.

As soon as she'd left and gone far enough out of earshot, Xelloss reappeared.

The chimera growled and got up to grab him by the collar and shake him a little, "Couldn't you have given me more warning than that?"

Xelloss snorted and giggled, "Do you really have to ask that question? Besides being entertaining, I was still a bit hungry." He continued to laugh as Zelgadis shook him harder after the Mazoku's admittance.

"You do realize you're giving me exactly what I want." Xelloss couldn't help but goad him into becoming angrier. It worked of course and although the chimera stopped shaking him, he clenched his hands, grit his teeth and stomped away, giving off even more negative emotions than before.

Zelgadis' anger at least aided him in calming down certain parts of his body and he stormed off downstairs to meet with Pakota and the others, Xelloss floating along behind him, giggling to himself the whole way.

* * *

><p>Lina had spent her morning holed up in her room drawing up sketches and writing notes when Amelia came to her door to tell her it was time to meet Pakota.<p>

She told her she'd be down soon and hastily stacked her papers together and shoved them into a hiding place in the folds and pockets of her clothing.

Lina wore her new traveling attire, but without her cape. She had decided she'd try wearing a different color than the usual magenta for her new outfit.

The cotton clothing was a shade of denim blue. As far as style, her pants and shirt didn't look too terribly different from her old garments aside from the color. However, instead of wearing yellow accents over her cloths, she wore a small leather vest. Its light brown color stood out quite nicely against the blue of her clothing and gave the illusion that her breasts were slightly bigger than they really were.

When she came down to the main hall, Lina discovered the rest of her companions were already present and found out that Gourry had been interrupted in his duel with Zangulus for the meeting.

The spar had been called a draw since Gourry broke and bent an entire stack of swords until he was finally on the last one when he was called away.

That would certainly explain the crying sword smith Lina had passed in the hallway.

Pakota called for their attention, "Since everyone's here now, you can all follow me."

Without waiting to see if they would follow him, he led the way down the hall and into the basement of the palace. After several flights of stairs they found themselves in a laboratory setting.

The prince took them past two guards and an old dungeon-like door that appeared to usually be kept locked.

Inside the large stone-walled room was a long work table that several objects were set on.

As soon as they saw the items, Lina and Gourry ran up to two of them and grabbed them right off the table without waiting to see if it was all right with Pakota or the several researchers that were standing nearby.

"The Sword of Light!" Gourry beamed happily.

"Galveira!" Lina picked up the bow and coddled it as though she were a little girl and it was her favorite stuffed toy. One could practically see little hearts popping up over her head.

Xelloss quirked an eyebrow, "It would seem that you and your researchers have been keeping busy Pakota-san."

The prince smirked with unhidden self-satisfied pride, "That's right. We took the notes and sketches that Gourry gave us to make another Sword of Light duplicate and copies of the other Darkstar weapons."

Zelgadis picked up the doppelganger of Valgaav's Ragudo Mezegis lance and held the dormant handle in his hands. It felt just as he remembered; it was a perfect clone.

The chimera looked over the weapon in wonder, "Gourry's notes and sketches?"

Pakota smirked, "Yeah, they were surprisingly detailed. I guess weapons are the only thing he can remember accurately." He snorted.

The blonde stopped in his admiration of the Gorun Nova copy to pout and look cutely offended. "Hey!"

Zelgadis smirked and called the light forth from the lance in his hands and was a little disappointed to see that the blade wasn't as brilliant and large as he remembered.

"I think you've still got some kinks to work out on these Pakota."

The former plushie crossed his arms, "Yeah, we know. These are our prototypes. Unfortunately, they aren't nearly as powerful as the originals, but we think we might have finally fixed the overheating problem my other Sword of Light had, but they still need more testing. At the very least, they're still a lot more powerful than your average weapon."

He sighed, a little disappointed, "You'll probably notice the biggest difference between ours and the real ones is that the copy Galveira is no where near as strong. From what I understand, the original was devastatingly powerful. At best, ours is slightly stronger than the Sword of Light."

Lina had to see for herself what he was talking about. She quickly called forth the light from the bow and instantly noticed its lack in power. She pouted and returned Galveira to its dormant state, "Well, I guess they're pretty good for a first try at least."

Pakota nodded, "Yeah, they're not bad." He smirked again, "Anyway, we've learned all we can from these first tries just testing them out in the lab. I'm sure you guys will be happy to help us out on the next phase."

The sorceress perked up. If she were a dog, her tail would be wagging frantically. "You want us to field test them for you right?"

Pakota grinned broadly and nodded and Lina jumped for joy and bounced around happily, holding her new bow.

Gourry didn't quite understand though. "Field test?"

Zelgadis smirked happily as he sliced Ragudo Mezegis through the air with ease and stopped to answer the blonde. "He means we get to use them in real battle but we need to tell him about any problems we find with them."

The swordsman's happiness returned tenfold, "So we get to keep them?"

The prince chuckled, "Yes, these prototypes are yours now."

Gourry immediately started heading toward the stairs, "Alright! I'm gonna see if I can catch Zangulus so we can finish our fight!" He disappeared up the stairs only to come back a few seconds later and shout, "Thanks Pakota!" before running off again.

Syphiel thanked the prince on Gourry's behave once more and followed after the blonde up the stairs.

Amelia rubbed the back of her head, "Um, Pakota-san, I'm really not that good with weapons. I don't think I could be much help to you on this."

The prince smiled at her, "Don't worry. My father's already talked to yours about it. If you didn't think you'd want to use one, your weapon will be given to one of the Captains in the Defensive Army of Seyruun."

The princess felt relieved that she wouldn't be letting down Pakota, "Ah that's good to hear."

"If I may?" Xelloss asked curiously, "Why have you requested my presence?"

Pakota sighed in frustration, "Despite my say in the discussions, it was decided to let you have a prototype as well, but _you_ will have to agree to a contract."

Xelloss, Amelia, Lina and Zelgadis all immediately stopped whatever they were doing and looked at the prince oddly.

One of Lina's eyebrows was so far up into her hair that it couldn't be seen any longer, "You're going to give Xelloss… a demon… one of your prototypes? Doesn't that count as 'falling into the wrong hands'?

The aforementioned demon smirked and said nothing in his own defense as Pakota frowned and crossed his arms, "Like I said, it wasn't my decision. But I guess that one of our weapons isn't really giving him an advantage or anything like that."

Xelloss smirked, "From the sounds of it, I would have to say that you're actually asking a favor of me and trying to make it seem like you're giving one instead." He leaned on his staff slightly, making him seem even more uncaring, "As you say, I do not require the use of a weapon. What do I get in return if I field test one of your prototypes for you?"

Pakota turned to glare at the demon, "What do you get-? How dare you! If you won't take one, we can easily find someone else who will."

Lina quickly ran up in between the two of them and stuck her hands up in a 'time out' pose with Galveira tucked under her arm, "Hold that thought Pakota!"

She quickly yanked Xelloss by the collar of his shirt into the far corner of the lab-like room and cracked him over the head with the sleeping bow once before starting private negotiations of her own.

The priest rubbed his head and playfully grinned at the girl as she hissed at him in a low voice, "Are you stupid Xelloss? Take one of them!"

He continued to smile, "Why should I?"

"If you get it then I can keep it close to me and use it when I want to too."

"So I would effectively just be the one to carry it for you most of the time?"

Lina expression suddenly turned sheepish, "Um… well if you want to put it that way…"

Xelloss smiled at her suggestively, "As I told him; what do I get in return?"

The sorceress blushed, "What else do you want Xelloss? I mean… you already get to… do stuff with me, and what would you possibly do with money?"

The demon placed a few fingers on his lips for a moment and tapped them a few times while he thought.

He suddenly stopped and a wide grin came to his face, "If I take one of the weapons and field test it for Pakota-san, then I get to pick out lingerie for you and you have to wear it."

Lina blushed dramatically and made a squeaking sound, but was able to keep her voice down from being heard by the large room's other occupants. "_What_?"

The demon simply grinned at her with his eyes open and twinkling with the thoughts of Lina in intimate wear. He was facing away from everyone else so only she could see him, "You heard me."

The sorceress continued to blush but nodded, "…It's a deal."

Xelloss closed his eyes once again and his usual innocent smile returned and he stood up straight, "Excellent."

He sauntered back over to the frowning prince while Lina continued to stand facing the corner until she could get control back over the color of her face.

Zelgadis had to look away from the others as well. His enhanced hearing effectively made him the only other person to hear Xelloss' deal, and the images of Lina in lingerie that were now floating around in his head was causing him to have a blush of his own.

"I will agree to your original terms Pakota-san." Xelloss smiled happily. "I will test one of the weapons for you without asking anything of you in return."

The prince looked between the priest and Lina, who was still in the corner, skeptically, "And you changed your mind because…" He trailed off, trying to get information out of the demon.

Xelloss just grinned, "That is a secret."

Pakota rolled his eyes and said sarcastically, "Of course it is." He sighed, "Whatever, as long as you get back to us on the bugs that need working on and agree to the contract."

The demon nodded, used to being required to agree to contracts. As a demon, it was well known that he couldn't break one, so humans often took advantage of it. Of course, most of them never seemed to realize that there were always loopholes to be found.

"Well, I guess you should first pick between the Nezard and Bodigar copies." He gestured toward the two weapons left on the table almost boredly.

Xelloss thought about it for a moment as he walked over to the table. He preferred to simply use his staff and his own powers. However, throughout his long centuries, the Mazoku had often kept himself entertained by learning various new things. One of which was mastering the use of most of the common weapons that humans had created.

Eventually, he figured that he would prefer the ax over the clawed trident and picked up Bodigar and turned back to Pakota with a grin.

"Right then." The prince reached into his pocket for a scrap of paper and read some notes off of it, "As a verbal contract, you, Xelloss of the Mazoku race, must agree to never use the prototype weapons, we of Taforashia have created, against those who are seen by the mass populace as being 'innocent'. Furthermore, you must agree to not use our weapons for what can be viewed as 'evil purposes'. In clarification, you may only use our weapons in what can be seen as self defense, practice purposes and against non-sentient targets."

"Additionally, you must never give the weapons to someone who has not already been approved by myself and the researchers. Meaning of course, that you cannot give or allow this weapon to come into possession of other Mazoku or anyone who would use it for 'evil purposes' or against the 'innocent'. Do you agree to the terms?"

Xelloss tilted his head to the side and thought about the wording of the verbal contract for a moment. It was fairly tight, but there were still some pretty good loopholes in there; such as using the weapon to cut down a tree that would fall on someone 'innocent'.

He smirked, "I agree."

Pakota nodded without looking up from his notes, "Do you also agree to give complete and useful feedback on the weapon's use whenever you are asked about it for the purpose of us improving the next version?"

"I do."

"Ok." The prince shoved his notes back into his pocket, "That should take care of that."

Pakota moved over to the table and picked up Nezard, "I'll go ahead and take this up to your father." He told Amelia, "Do you want to come with me?"

The princess smiled happily and began following him towards the stairs. "Sure."

He turned back to Xelloss, Lina and Zelgadis before leaving, "Oh… and please try not to break them." He grimaced.

The three gave him various nods. Lina's smile was worryingly eager while Xelloss' was darkly mischievous.

Pakota cringed slightly and walked up the stairs. He sure hoped he'd get to see those weapons again.

The sorceress and chimera followed after the prince, intent on taking their new weapons outside to try out. Xelloss teleported away saying he had 'some shopping to do' with a lecherous smile and a laugh that left Lina nervous long after he'd vanished.

As they walked outside onto the well manicured palace lawns, Zelgadis was curious, "I thought for sure you would demand that Xelloss make copies of the weapons right then and there."

A merchant's smile spread across her face, "Oh I definitely will, but I'm patient enough to wait on that until I feel ready to officially commit to his proposal." Her smiling face tinted pink. "The way things are looking, that probably won't be too much longer anyway."

Zelgadis tapped the dormant Ragudo Mezegis against his shoulder as they continued to walk across the green grass and past where they could see Gourry once again fighting with Zangulus a fair distance away from them.

"We really need to figure out a way to get the upper hand over Xelloss. I'd like to at least feel like I have a _little_ control over things with him." He frowned, "I'm tired of him popping in randomly and doing whatever he damn well pleases."

Lina smirked at him smugly, "Did he pay you a little visit this morning Zel?"

The chimera's glower deepened and he didn't answer her.

"Well how's that for coincidence?" The sorceress pulled out a few crumpled sheets of paper from a hidden pocket in her clothes and handed them to him with an even broader smirk, "Look what I happened to be working on this morning."

Zelgadis took the papers in his free hand and looked them over curiously, "What's this?" He asked even as he read through the notes.

A broad, scheming smile appeared on his own face as he quickly scanned over the pages and Lina didn't bother to answer him, asking a question instead, "How about we hold off on testing out our new weapons to do some shopping of our own while Xelloss isn't around?"

The chimera handed the papers back to Lina with a smile that could be described as devious, "Sounds like a good plan to me."

* * *

><p>AN<p>

Lina's actually waiting to test out Galveira to work on whatever her new project is? Must be something special! *wicked grin*

What was that in the beginning of the chapter? Is Xelloss actually _concerned_ for their safety? O_o lol We'll see :3

I know I probably overuse the jokes about Zel's wiry hair, but I don't care. They're my favorite :P

For some reason I'm just loving the image of Xelloss being smacked upside the head with books LOL

Zel seemed pretty uke in this chapter . Don't worry though! He will redeem himself on that *evil laugh*


	11. Scandalous Purchases

During the walk towards Merchant's Row in town, Lina and Zelgadis quickly realized they would need to stop by the weapons shop as well. Neither of them had the patience to be constantly carrying around their new oversized weapons in hand when they didn't need to use them.

They were mildly impressed with Xelloss' tolerance to always have one of his hands occupied by carrying his staff for the last thousand years, when they were sick of it after only half an hour.

The marketplace of Taforashia was bustling with the usual busyness expected of such a place in the early afternoon, but the amount of shoppers was even more staggering than usual, as it was the last day for the festival that was still going on in the streets nearby.

Like most of the city, Merchant's Row was kept blissfully cool from the summer heat by the shade of one of the many oversized trees found in the area. Sunlight still managed to trickle through the thick foliage and shine in glittering beams onto random roofs and street signs within the lively bazaar.

Inside the weapons store, Lina and Zelgadis ignored the curious looks the shop keeper gave their weapons as he fitted the bow and lance for carrying straps.

Lina paid the man, not feeling like spending the time haggling for once, and they walked back out onto Merchant's Row with their weapons on their backs and both of their hands free again.

Almost as soon as they were out on the street again, they saw Martina who was sporting a full shopping bag and a sour look on her face. Lina raised up her hand to grab Zelgadis and yank him back inside the store until the obnoxious queen had passed by, but it was too late for any of that as the green haired girl's minimal instincts seemed to pick up that she was being stared at and her eyes snapped over in their direction.

The sorceress dropped her hand and waited for the inevitable as Martina quickly walked up to them with a face that was a combination of annoyance, horror and eagerness to gossip.

She wasted no time in trying to get the information she wanted as she continued to make her strange face and moved her free hand to whisper conspiratorially to them, "Hey, do you guys know if Xelloss has a girlfriend or something?"

Lina and Zelgadis' faces were rather comical as their facial muscles couldn't decide on dread, shock or annoyance.

The sorceress shivered nervously for a moment, which Martina seemed to take as revulsion. "Why do you ask Martina?"

The girl pointed down the busy street she had just come from, "I just saw him in the lingerie shop down that way." She turned back to them with an expression that kept flashing between utter disgusted horror, and blushing thoughtful consideration, "I thought for a minute that maybe that fruitcake demon was getting something for himself, but the clothing he was looking at was way too small for him."

Lina and Zelgadis sputtered and snickered for all of two seconds before they both suddenly remembered Xelloss' comment about wearing a tiny maid's outfit after losing their race. They both blushed darkly as they seemed to share the identical thoughts and came to the same conclusion that the demon probably _was_ the kind of person who would wear women's lingerie if he was in the mood. The fact that he could change into the body of a woman at will didn't seem to make them feel any less awkward. If anything, it only served to put the idea in their minds that Xelloss would be completely confident in his male body while wearing a corset, garter belt and stockings.

If Lina and Zelgadis knew they were thinking of the exact same image, they would probably think they'd had a spontaneous telepathic communication. Although, even if they _did_ know, it would probably only serve to embarrass them further.

Thankfully, Martina didn't seem to understand their dark blushes for what they truly were. She just assumed they were simply shocked and embarrassed as someone might be upon hearing that their comrade was caught in a lingerie shop.

Lina couldn't stop her blush but she waved her hand dismissively, the frantic flapping of her hand was also meant to cool her face down a bit, "Um, well, his Lord prefers to take the form of a woman. She probably just asked him to pick up something for her. Most of the time, Mazoku Lords like to just lounge around their strongholds all day."

Martina's attention was focused on Lina as the other girl spoke and the queen didn't notice the chimera wipe away a small trace of blood from his nose out of her line of sight. He couldn't get the dirty thoughts out of his mind and Zelgadis was desperately wishing he'd worn his cloak and cowl today so he could cover his vibrantly red face – summer heat or not.

The girl looked up to the sky in a stereotypical thinking pose for a moment, "So, you're saying Mazoku can look like whatever they want?"

Lina nodded, "Yeah, the stronger ones can."

"If that's true, and he really was shopping for his master, then why was he looking at clothing made for small women with hardly any breasts? Wouldn't someone who can change their shape choose to have more bust and curves than that?"

It was a very good thing that Martina was still staring up through the tree's canopy toward the sky. Otherwise, she would have caught the brief flash of Lina's complete and utter outrage of her figure being insulted again. At Zelgadis' covert nudge, she quickly reverted her expression back to normal. Martina didn't know that Xelloss had been really shopping for her, and the sorceress intended to keep it that way.

Out of anywhere in the world that that damn demon could have gone shopping, he had to do it in town where their companions might see him. However, all things considered, that was probably the point.

That brought a question to Lina's mind and she blurted it out without much thought, "Did Xelloss know you saw him?"

Martina looked back down at the other girl, "Well, I was already in the shop before he came in, so he noticed me first."

Lina and Zelgadis barely contained the scowls that threatened to appear on their faces. That clenched it. They were going to beat the crap out of him when they saw him next – or at least try valiantly to do so. Xelloss still let them strangle him whenever they were angry with him. Although, these days, he no longer bothered to pretend that their efforts actually caused him any discomfort.

The red head managed to keep the anger she felt from showing by turning it into something much more deviously entertaining. She was probably picking up a few bad habits from the Mazoku in question.

Lina smirked smugly, "You were shopping in a lingerie shop Martina?" She gestured to the girls' usual skimpy outfit, "Surely you weren't there to buy anything to go _under_ that. Most underwear covers more than what you're already wearing."

Martina huffed indignantly and shot her a glare and blurted out her defense without thinking the slightest bit about how it was no defense at all. "I wasn't buying underwear. Lingerie shops are the only places I can get clothes in my style."

Zelgadis eyebrows shot up at Martina's unbelievable ignorance and Lina burst out laughing, "Don't you think that's a _pretty big_ hint that the clothes you wear are meant for the bedroom?"

The queen suddenly realized just how damning her own statement had been and she blushed in a mixture of embarrassment and fury, "You only make fun of me because you're just jealous at how good I look and how flat-chested and stick figured you are! No matter what you do you'll never have a body like mine."

Lina's face blanked for a second before it crinkled in outright vehemence and rage. Fire started flicking in between the sorceress's fingertips unbidden. Martina's eyes widened at the spectacle and she suddenly realized she may have gone just a tad too far. She may have been able to get away with some of what she said with only getting throttled for it. However, that last sentence she threw in there may well have been signing her own death certificate.

As far as Martina was concerned, her salvation came from an unlikely place as Zelgadis suddenly stepped between the two women. He put both hands on Lina's shoulders to calm her and get her attention on him instead of the big mouthed girl behind him.

Lina's fury backed off only slightly as she looked up at the chimera's face and tried to get a grip on her very strong urge to blow up Merchant's Row in a display of homicidal rage. His hands on her shoulders and the comforting look in his eyes helped to keep her from cutting her power loose.

Martina's view of the shared moment was blocked by the chimera, and having enough survival instincts to not let Lina see her for the moment, she wasn't about to peek over his shoulder to see what it was he was doing to calm her down.

Zelgadis moved his right hand up to Lina's cheek to caress her comfortingly and told her in a soft voice with as much warmth and understanding as the usually gruff chimera could muster, in a tone just low enough that no one but the red head could hear, "Don't listen to her Lina. She doesn't have a clue what she's talking about."

The petite girl continued to look up at him, eyes full of an anger that had lessened greatly from the fury it was only a moment ago. Zelgadis stroked her cheek once more and thought he saw a sparkle in one of her eyes that was threatening to become a tear.

The chimera felt his chest tighten and his throat constrict at the mere idea of the hair trigger, overly confident, firebrand girl letting someone like Martina make her shed even a single tear. The fact that it was because the queen had once again insulted Lina on the subject she was most sensitive about only made the surge of protectiveness that Zelgadis suddenly felt all the more potent.

So far, the queen could attribute his actions to simply calming the red head down from blowing up half the city. If he gave in to the overpowering urge to hold Lina that he was feeling, Martina would know something was going on between them, and with her big mouth, the rest of their group would know before the sun set.

Of course, Zelgadis realized that their budding relationship, as well as the one they had with Xelloss, would be found out eventually. But he didn't want to cause the inevitable chaotic reactions among his friends any sooner than humanly possible.

After too much time alone with his thoughts during the last few days, Zelgadis had come to the conclusion that their three way relationship would most likely be met with shock, anger, and arguments that could possibly split his friends apart forever if they weren't careful and that was something he would prefer to put off indefinitely if he could.

Even knowing what their unorthodox relationship could do to their group, Zelgadis couldn't bring himself to back out now. Whether they truly realized it or not, Lina, and even Xelloss, had already begun chipping away at the stone wall that had formed around the chimera's heart that was built by years of contempt, anger and fear directed at him by strangers and Rezo's unforgivable actions and betrayal.

Zelgadis couldn't bear to look at Lina any longer without losing the battle within himself and giving in and wrapping his arms around her.

He turned around in his place to face Martina but reached one hand around behind him to find and grasp Lina's hand and squeeze it comfortingly out of the queen's sight.

The shaman managed to berate the queen for her words without sounding like he cared about Lina any more than just a friend. "Martina, you should know by now that saying things like that to Lina are hazardous to your health."

Martina crossed her arms, one hand still holding her shopping bag, and scowled angrily, but her shoulders relaxed in relief at having been miraculously saved from a fiery death by Zelgadis. She didn't know how the chimera had been able to calm the sorceress down, but she was smart enough not to question her good fortune.

Zelgadis would have just left it at that and led Lina away toward their destination, but the place they were looking for was back the way Martina had come and past the lingerie shop.

The chimera did his best not to cringe when he asked the girl in front of him, "Do you know if Xelloss is still back there? I'm sure you can understand that we'd rather not see him if at all possible and we need to head in that direction." It was in their best interest for him not to clarify _why_ it was they didn't want to cross paths with Xelloss; simply that they didn't.

Martina easily fell for Zelgadis' misleading statement as she was meant to. Really, the Mazoku trickster was fast becoming a bad influence on his human lovers.

The girl shivered, though if it was out of revulsion or some still hidden desire for the demon, Zelgadis couldn't tell. "I don't blame you for not wanting to see him with lacy underwear in his hands. It's going to take me months to get the ideas out of my head."

The chimera wisely decided to not ask if those ideas of hers were actually good or bad thoughts. Eventually Martina stopped seeing the current image in her mind's eye and turned back to Zelgadis and shrugged dismissively, "No, he teleported away before I left the store. He muttered something about Sophia's in Atlas City having more of the kind of stuff he was looking for before he disappeared."

Lina could hear Martina perfectly from where she stood behind Zelgadis and at the mention of Xelloss shopping at 'Sophia's' she compulsively squeezed Zel's hand much harder and rested her forehead on his back in her attempt to hold in the squawk and embarrassed ramblings that felt like they could fly from her mouth at any moment.

It was clear that Martina had never been to 'Sophia's' in Atlas City before, otherwise it would take her a year instead of months to clear her head of ideas that Xelloss had unintentionally (or maybe even intentionally) planted in her mind.

However, Lina _had_ been in 'Sophia's' before. It had been a complete and total accident that she had even walked into the store to begin with. She had been looking for 'Sophie's', which was a magic shop a couple of streets over.

It had been an outing that she had thankfully taken alone that time. If any of her friends would have been with her, she probably would have dropped dead from embarrassment on the threshold of the door. However, since she had been by herself, her morbid curiosity had taken control of her feet and with a red face that could have easily been mistaken for a bad sunburn, she had walked the isles of the shop that no one else had been in.

'Sophia's' sold lacy underwear, corsets, garter belts, stockings, and bras just like any other lingerie store would, but about half of their selection was what one might call 'special interest wear'.

For every lacy garment on the left half of the store, there had been one made of black leather on the right.

From leather thigh high boots, to tight leather corsets and 'necklaces' that looked like it belonged more on a ferocious junkyard dog than it did on a person – 'Sophia's' had it all covered. Lina had even caught a glimpse of some riding crops and 'cat o' nine tails' on one of the shelves in the far corner.

The sorceress had briefly wondered back then if her old traveling companion, Naga the Serpent, had bought her usual clothing from the shop. Her thought had been quickly interrupted when the pretty, and very much pregnant, shopkeeper had come back onto the sales floor through the door that led back to the storage room.

The owner, Sophia, didn't even have a chance to ask Lina the customary question of 'Can I help you?' before the girl blushed an even more vibrant shade of red than what she was already sporting and ran right out the door and straight past 'Sophie's' magic shop several blocks away before she stopped fleeing.

Unbeknownst to Lina, the woman merely shook her head and laughed, the red head certainly wasn't the first sorceress who had walked into her shop by mistake and she definitely wouldn't be the last.

Back in the present, remembering all the erotic clothing she had seen in the store made Lina blush even harder. She twisted Zelgadis' wrist a little bit, trying to communicate to him without talking or seeing her that she wanted him to lead the way down the street so she could use him as a shield to stop people from seeing how red her face was.

Of course, Zelgadis couldn't derive _all_ of that from a simple twist of his wrist, but he did manage to understand that she didn't want Martina to see her.

The chimera felt the best way to keep the queen from seeing Lina was to make sure Martina walked away first.

He almost snapped his fingers as a thought came to mind but pointed back the direction he and Lina had come from instead, "Gourry just got a replacement Sword of Light and he and Zangulus are having a duel back at the palace. Now that he's got a weapon that doesn't break on him, Gourry's fighting at his best again. If you hurry, you might get to watch them for a bit before your husband loses."

Martina scowled angrily at him, "How dare you! Zangulus can win against that idiot!"

Zelgadis smirked and easily goaded her on, "Care to place a wager on that? I bet ten silver pieces on Gourry to win."

It was almost pathetic at how easily she rose to the bait, "You're on! You'll see! Zangulus will win this time for sure! His Demonsbane can't be beat!"

Zelgadis face was uncaring as he made a shooing motion with his spare hand, "Well, go on then and find out how it ends."

"You're not coming?"

The chimera shook his head, "Lina and I have some shopping to do at the magic stores. I'll find out the results of the fight from Sylphiel when we come back – and then I'll collect my money from you." He grinned smugly.

Martina huffed, "You mean you'll be paying me!" She stomped off, thankfully not bothering to be nosy enough to ask what they were buying. She probably figured it was just standard sorcerer stuff anyway.

Once she was around the corner, he pulled on Lina's hand that was still on his wrist so she would be walking next to him and led them down the street in the opposite direction.

Zelgadis entwined his fingers with hers and squeezed her hand briefly before letting it go and walking beside her normally once more.

Lina blushed but it was no longer from the previous thoughts of 'Sophia's'. She looked up to him and smiled in cute appreciation, "Thanks for getting rid of her Zel."

Zelgadis smiled down at her as they continued to walk, "It was my pleasure." And he really meant it too. He didn't care for Martina much more than Lina did.

He couldn't help but wonder about Lina's reaction from earlier though. "It seemed like you knew of the store Martina said Xelloss had mentioned."

Lina blushed in the same kind of embarrassment she felt before and looked down at the ground they walked on, "I do, but I think the store name 'Leather and Lace' would be more appropriate."

Zelgadis nearly tripped over his own feet as his brain was assaulted with images of Lina in a tight, black leather underwear, leather corset and matching thigh high boots, with a tiny lacy skirt that barely covered anything at all.

His brain was so busy dealing with the image in his head that he didn't even begin to think about how Lina even knew of such a shop's existence. He simply said, quite lamely, "… I see."

* * *

><p>To say that Lina and Zelgadis were going shopping at a magic shop was very deceiving. The statement seemed to imply that they would be shopping at a <em>legitimate<em> magic store. Which was not the case this time. What they needed to buy, no shopkeeper would keep in stock unless they were willing to risk gaining the unfavorable attentions of the Royal Guard.

Neither of them made it a habit to do much shopping in disreputable stores very often. But both of them knew that there was always the occasional need to do something that was considered by the ruling authority to be illegal or wrong. That being the case, Lina and Zelgadis always kept an ear to the ground for where the local shady businesses in town could be found. And despite the naïve beliefs of a certain justice speech spouting princess, shady businesses and dodgy merchants could always be found in even the most peace loving and pleasant of cities like Seyruun and Taforashia.

Whether or not Lina and Zelgadis' reasons for standing outside the door of the back alley shop was truly a good enough 'need' to be testing their morals like this was up for debate. However, without anyone present who would argue their judgment (namely Amelia), they had no reason not to knock on the door that stood before them.

A small panel in the door that was at eye level for a person of average height slid open to reveal the top portion of a face that seemed to belong to an aging man in his late fifties.

The man's voice was deep and raspy, "Whatcha want?"

Lina took on her 'I'm gonna make a deal with you whether you like it or not' stance, "We hear that you sell all kinds of magical items of questionable origin. We were hoping you might have something particular in stock that we're looking for."

The old man's eyes narrowed at them, "You ain't with the Guard are ya?"

Zelgadis snorted and Lina waved a hand in front of the little window. "Are you blind? Do we _look_ like do-gooders?"

The pair of eyes squinted at Zelgadis, as if he was actually seeing him for the first time. Lina had just been shouting off insults but the man really might have needed glasses. "Nah, guess ya couldn't be." He shut the little door and they heard the actual door being unlatched before it swung open to reveal the old man. He was dressed in a simple merchant's pants and loose shirt and he was just as disheveled and dusty as they could expect of a back alley business owner. "Sorry 'bout asking. Can't be too careful ya know."

He ushered them inside and shut the door behind them, flipping the two latches once more. Lina and Zelgadis only hoped the man didn't recognize them from the descriptions that floated around about them as two of the 'Saviors of Taforashia'. If he did, he probably wouldn't sell anything to them, but it was already too late to wear something that disguised their features.

Luck seemed to be on their side though, as it turned out that the man was so near-sighted that he could only see the color of Zelgadis' skin and the shape of his ears and not the fact that his flesh was actually stone.

The dusty old man squinted at Zelgadis, "You one o' them night elves ain't ya? Hadna seen an elf folk in a good decade. Your kind's a real secretive bunch ain't they?"

Zelgadis flinched, being mistaken for an elf was definitely different, but he recognized a way to keep their identities safe when he saw it. "Um… yes. I don't care to show myself in cities much." That wasn't a lie.

The shopkeeper nodded and looked down to squint his old eyes at Lina, "And who's this young one? Your adoptive human daughter is she?"

Lina stomped her foot and fumed angrily, she didn't care if they needed to buy what they were looking for from this guy, she didn't tolerate being called a little girl by anyone. "You seriously need to get your eyes checked old man! I may be petite but I'm nineteen!"

The aging merchant rubbed the back of his neck nervously, "Oh! Sorry there missy! It's just as ya say, my eyes ain't what they used to be." He laughed and squinted at the pair, trying to see them better, "If ya don't mind my rudeness one more time - If ya don't wanna answer, ya can tell me to go jump off a bridge or somethin' - but my damnable curiosity makes me wanna ask how it is a night elf and a human girl came to my door together."

Lina was just about to tell him to go ahead and jump off that bridge but she was completely at a loss for words when Zel wrapped an arm across her shoulders possessively while still standing behind her. He told the man, "She's my lover" in a completely even and confident voice that left absolutely no doubt that she was anything else.

Zelgadis wasn't even really sure himself what caused his sudden change in behavior. It could have been the emotion he felt toward Lina after their meeting with Martina, or it could well have been that he was acting differently in front of this person than normal in order to live up to an altered persona; they say that people act much different than they usually do when they wear masks and there was truth to that.

No matter the initial reason, the chimera was able to act as he did because the merchant was as blind as a bat and would never be able to recognize them for who they really were. It made Zelgadis feel as though he could actually give Lina affection in front of this man – as if _someone_ witnessing the truth of their relationship made it even more tangible and real than keeping it completely secret and hidden away from the entire world.

The girl in his embrace blushed, "Ze-" the chimera pressed a swift and affectionate kiss to her lips to keep her from saying his name and shushed her to make her realize she shouldn't try to say it again. She nodded in understanding, a small enough movement that the aging man couldn't see it.

The merchant smiled happily at them, "Well blessed be! Good luck to the two o' ya down the road then. The world ain't too kind to lovers o' mixed race."

He looked slightly sad all of a sudden, "I might not know much else but I know what I'm talking 'bout this time at least. In my younger years, I had me a beauty of a girl, only problem was, she was of the wolf beastman tribe. Our family's fussed and fought over us til their bickering drove she and me apart. They got what they wanted, but I was never happier than the years I was with my Minka…" He trailed off in a lower voice as if lost in thought, "She had the most beautiful silver fur you'd ever seen."

The merchant came back from his thoughts, "Ended up marryin' a fine human lass eventually though. T'wasn't quite 'missus right' but she was pretty close to it at least an we had a good run up til she died a few years back."

All the frustration that was left in Lina at the old man for mistaking her for a young girl bled away at his short tale. She couldn't help but feel sympathy for him and said, "I know what you mean about people's opinions being unkind. Our friends don't know about our relationship yet." She bit her lip in thought, "I'm not too thrilled about what they may think of it."

Zelgadis arm wrapped around her tighter, apparently he hadn't been the only one to worry about the reactions their companions would have when they found out their secret.

The old man smiled happily to them, "Well ya can choose yer friends. Ya can't choose yer family. If your friends are worth keepin' then they'll be happy for ya."

Lina continued to worry her bottom lip. She didn't know why she felt so compelled to confide in this man. Perhaps it was because she had no outside party to speak to at all about her odd relationship with Zelgadis and Xelloss and she needed some unbiased reassurances more than she had previously thought she did.

She placed her hand over Zel's on her shoulder and patted it once before telling the stranger, "Well, it's a bit more complicated than just him and me…" She ignored the way Zel stiffened against her, if he wanted to argue with her about telling a stranger, who didn't realize who they were, and couldn't even really see them, about their confusing relationships then she'd be more than willing to fight about it later. He'd been the one to start this conversation with the out of the ordinary way he had acted in front of the man anyway.

"You see… the problem they might have is that there's another among our companions… who we're both also involved with." She blushed darkly and cast her glance down to the ground, unable to bare the possible contempt of this likeable stranger for some reason. She also suddenly realized that this questionable information might cause him to throw them out of his shop before they got what they'd come there for.

Zelgadis was clearly blushing at Lina's confession but kept his eyes on the man, almost daring him to say something that would hurt the girl's feelings. Of course, his threatening glare went unheeded as the man couldn't see the look but it was unnecessary anyway. The man's face split into a wide grin and he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Ahhh. The lot o' ya got enough love for two do ya? I'm sure ya have plenty o' fun times in the dead a night that'd make anyone else green with jealousy."

Lina and Zel blushed furiously but didn't make any sound or movement to verify or argue his statement.

The dusty old merchant continued to grin widely and asked, "Well, the obvious question is, as odd as this arrangement between ya is, does it make the three a ya happy?"

Lina blinked owlishly at the question. As strange as their relationship was, and between all the games and bickering and one upping each other constantly, she really was happy. In fact, all that stuff was a big part of what made her feel so content. The redhead didn't think she could stomach the real lovey-dovey crap. She didn't think Zelgadis would be able to either and as for Xelloss, it would probably make him terribly sick, despite the Mazoku's claims that positive emotions didn't really affect him after all.

Lina continued to blush and nodded with a shy smile, "Yeah, I guess it does make me happy."

The old man smiled at her kindly, and looked up in Zelgadis' direction, "What about ya?"

The chimera didn't like being under the proverbial magnifying glass like this, even by a man that could barely see.

Zelgadis had been doing a lot of thinking about his relationship with Lina and Xelloss while he was in the library that morning. Despite all the books laid out on the table when the demon had found him, truth be told, the chimera had stared blankly at many of them while he contemplated the recent events in his life.

Throughout the many hours of switching between reading and thinking, Zelgadis had realized then that he was happier than he had been since his body had been cursed. Despite the newfound emotions he felt concerning his two lovers, it was almost maddening to think that his salvation from the darkness he had created for himself had been walking down dirt roads at a mere arm's length away from him for years.

He looked straight into the old man's barely seeing eyes and nodded his head and spoke in a manner that left absolutely no question of how sure he was, "I _am_ happy."

Lina's eyes widened and she turned back to look at Zelgadis from over her shoulder as much as she could. She'd never thought she would ever hear those words come from his lips and certainly not to a stranger.

The chimera saw the surprised look on her face and gave her a small but genuinely happy smile, reinforcing that what he said was the truth.

The old merchant couldn't really see the emotional exchange and pressed on with the topic. "And the other one? How do they see it?"

Lina and Zelgadis both turned back to the pleasant old man. The girl chuckled slightly, "Well it's because of him that this whole thing got started. He certainly seems happy about the arrangement to me."

The man smiled broadly and nodded, "Well then, if the three o' ya are content and pleased, then to hell with everyone who might frown on ya. Everyone's got their own rhythm ya know? What makes one person happy might anger another. What I said 'bout yer friends before still stands true. If they're worth keepin' by yer side, then they'll accept what ya have even if they don't understand it."

He laughed at a thought, "Though when ya do tell 'em you might wanna give 'em a bit for the shock to wear off before ya decide if they're gonna have a real problem or not. Some people just don't handle unexpected surprises that well and can get all mad at something before they give themselves a chance to get it."

Lina and Zelgadis both nodded their heads grimly. Amelia was exactly like that. Neither of them were looking forward to whatever speech about evil, justice, immoral, right and wrong that she would spout off before she actually stopped to consider the way they felt about the unconventional relationship they shared.

As for Filia – well, even if just one of them was involved with Xelloss she'd have kittens over it. If she found out that _both_ of them were involved with the demon… she'd flat out have a cow and beat them to death with her mace before they ever got to see the way she handled the information about their relationship after the shock wore off.

No matter what, they'd have to be sure that Filia never found out about them and Xelloss. The dragon's quick temper whenever the demon was involved and her forgetfulness of her strength spelled almost certain doom for Lina and Zelgadis.

"Well, 'm pretty sure ya didn't come here planning on tellin' an old man about yer worries. Though ah'm happy it seems something ah've said musta eased your minds just a bit." The merchant smiled merrily and nodded to himself. "What is it yer looking for?" He smiled and gestured them farther inside the shop.

The three of them had been standing in a foyer-like area before. The old man ushered them past an archway and into the moderately sized room where he kept most of his goods. Most items were hidden among boxes and crates, ready for quick and easy removal in case the shop needed to be moved in a hurry.

Lina looked around the space appreciatively. The very few items that were left out to see were some real treasures and powerful items.

There was a magically sealed jar with a portion of a lesser Mazoku's swirling vortex of astral presence manifested on the physical plane trapped inside, hexed and cursed weapons, armor and jewelry, vials of ogre's blood, a unicorn's horn, and a staff made of the bone of a large creature, most likely a dragon's, among other things. Lina also thought she saw a knife in its sheath that looked eerily familiar to her sitting on a box on the far side of the room.

Lina stopped in her appraisal of the items scattered around the area, "We're looking for a fang from a golden dragon."

The dusty merchant smiled, happy to be helpful to the couple he'd taken such a liking to. "Ah! Luck has befallen ya. I happen to have a small variety o' dragon fangs. Quite enough to take yer pick from. Plenty o' powerful items can be carved from a golden dragon's ivory."

Lina and Zelgadis smiled in triumph. Dragon fangs weren't commonly found anywhere but inside a dragon's mouth, and those were a little hard to get to. They had worried they might not even be able to find one in Taforashia. That the old merchant had enough to pick from was astonishing.

The girl rubbed her hands together, "Great! Let's see 'em!"

The old man led them over to a stack of boxes in the corner, "Last I seen o' them, they was over here, if'n ya don't mind helping me look through these."

The three of them started on the pile of crates, opening each one and setting it to the side when they found something other than a dragon's tooth inside.

When they worked their way down to the bottom of the pile, the merchant rubbed his neck embarrassed and said apologetically, "Sorry. I guess that son o' mine moved them on me. He's normally here, but took off to gallivant around the festival today with that new girl o' his. Otherwise I'd ask 'im where he put the damn things."

Lina shrugged, frustrated that they'd be wasted more time, but happy to put her hands on all the treasure she found, "We'll just have to look for them ourselves."

After the third stack of boxes, Lina got up and stretched, giving herself a short break. She sauntered around the room slowly and when she walked past the knife she'd seen earlier she stopped to look down at it and stare in wide eyed shock.

It really was that same stupid knife! The one that had a curse on it that whoever looked at their reflection in the blade went berserk. The very same knife that was among the treasure with the statue that hid the sorcerer's stone from when she had met Zelgadis.

However the cursed blade had ended up in this very store was one of those rare coincidences that kept life interesting.

Lina picked up the small weapon, careful to keep it in its sheath, and looked at it with a feeling of nostalgia. She hated the stupid thing, but at the same time, finding it was like finding a long lost personal treasure.

The sorceress fondly remembered when she and Gourry first met Zelgadis during the early night hours of her inn room. She reflected on just how much the chimera had changed over the years. No matter what, his overall personality had always been gruff and irritable.

Even though he was still very much the same cranky chimera, Zelgadis had slowly opened up and allowed himself to once again enjoy life in bits and pieces. As the years had passed, the shaman had changed just as much as he stayed the same.

Lina smiled happily at the knife and turned back to where Zelgadis was still helping the old man go through boxes, "Hey Ze- uh… Hey!" She cut herself off from saying his name and walked over to him happily showing him the knife.

"Remember this?" She wiggled it in her hands just a bit.

The old man turned to see what she was going on about and squinted at the small weapon. He was close enough to her and the knife to realize what it was she'd picked up. "Hey now missy. Careful with that, it's got a mean curse on it."

She smiled happily at him, "Don't worry. He and I have come across this particular item before."

Zelgadis' eyebrows creased as he tried to remember where he'd seen the object before, "We have?"

Lina smirked, "I don't blame you if you don't remember. You only saw it once or maybe twice before I got rid of it. So I'll tell you…" She continued to grin, "Remember the night we met and you came to buy that Orihalcon statue from me without telling me which item I had that it was you wanted to buy? Well this was that other item." She wiggled the knife in her grasp again and smirked.

Zelgadis' eyebrows shot up in recognition, "It really _is _the same knife isn't it? How the hell did it wind up here?"

The old merchant laughed out right, "Must be a day that was blessed just for ya. Imagine that! Finding an item from the day ya met, just laying about my shop after ya talked about yer worries with yer relationships with this ol' merchant . Ceiphied 'imself must favor ya kindly. Must be his way of tellin' ya not to fret." He smiled happily at the pair.

Lina smiled just as happily back at him. "I hate the curse on the stupid thing, but how much do you want for it?"

The dusty man waved at her dismissively with a big smile on his face. "Take it free o' charge. Honestly, I'd be happy to be rid o' the damn thing. My stupid son went and got the curse on it put on 'imself. Was quite a hassle he was. Thankful, my other son, who be a skilled white magic healer, was visiting at the time. Got his brother fixed up 'afore he could be a real pest." The merchant laughed heartily, "'Course he knocked 'im out cold 'afore he rid the curse."

Lina snickered. She bet that would have been fun to see.

She nodded in appreciation, "Thank you Mister…" She trailed off, realizing that she didn't know what to call him.

The old man went back to looking through boxes, "Ye can call me Marstaf." He turned back to grin at her, "But I'm trustin' ya not to tell no one. Business I'm in - don't want too many folks to know yer name."

Lina nodded in understanding, "I'm…" She trailed off once again at Zelgadis' quick, warning glance. Realizing that she knew she shouldn't reveal her identity to the man. Although… now that she thought of it… was there any reason to keep it a secret? The kindly old man probably wouldn't kick them out, knowing they were among the 'Saviors of Taforashia' and he wasn't likely to go gossiping around town about what they'd told him of their curious relationship.

The sorceress was saved from her decision when old Marstaf turned back to her once more with another smile. "'S alright missy. If'n ya don't feel comfy giving me yer real name, ya can make one up. I know makin' deals with a merchant tradin' in the wares I do - most people are antsy to give their names."

That wasn't the reason at all. Lina didn't really care if someone found out she was shopping in a questionable magic shop - though if Amelia found out, she might regret it if only because she'd have to listen to the self-righteous princess's scolding.

She smiled at the man and finally said, "Um… I guess you can call me Lulu."

Zelgadis nearly choked on air. Would Lina ever let that stupid name die?

The chimera looked up to see Marstaf and Lina looking at him expectantly. It must have been his turn to make up a name…

"You… uh… you can call me Rodimus."

Lina's eyebrow shot up. She hadn't heard that name in a long time. Apparently, Zelgadis could only come up with names of comrades who had died when put on the spot to think up a false identity. Lina's names might be stupid, but she made them up herself.

Marstaf smiled happily and shook both of their hands briefly. "Well met." He told them before turning to the next box in the pile and opening it.

Lina tucked the knife onto her belt and moved to help them go through more boxes. "So, how'd a nice guy like you get wrapped up selling items you could get in trouble for anyway? All the other people I've met that are in the same market as you are real jackasses."

The old merchant continued to squint his eyes, trying to see what was in the box in his hands, "Used to own a normal magic shop. Eventually, I realized that there were plenty 'o banned items that people needed to get for their work that couldn't be gotten in an honest way."

He turned back to smile at her again, "Most the questionable stuff in my shop I got myself from the original owners willingly." He chuckled, "Like the dragon teeth. Some o' them fell from the mouths o' babes when their adult ones came in, and some o' them were knocked clear out o' mouths from fightin'."

Marstaf gestured around his shop. "Even the stuff here made o' bone and the like, came from critters that were already dead when they were found. If I know better, I only trade in the items I sit well with. Meanin' I don't ever deal with hunters."

Lina looked back at the vials of ogre's blood and pointed, "Even the blood?"

He nodded, knowing what she was pointing at without being able to see it, "Yep. Them ogres traded me some o' their blood willingly in exchange for some o' my foodstuffs. T'was no big deal to them. They healed right up faster'n a minute."

He continued on, moving the box he had out of the way and grabbing another, "Me an my boy do a lot o' traveling. Only stay in one place at a time no longer n' a year. We was in Vezendy last. Did a bit o' wandering around to various places on our way here and ended up in Taf'rashia in the spring." He chuckled as he opened the box in hand and shook his head, "Way that son o' mine fancies that girl though, he might end up stayin' here the next time I move."

Marstaf grinned as his eyes squinted and focused on the object inside the new box. "Aha! Finally! Here's one o' them. Bet the others are in the crates underneath."

The old merchant handed the opened box to Zelgadis, who took it and looked inside. Sure enough, it was a fang from a dragon, and if old Marstaf was to be believed, it was from a golden dragon.

He continued to open the crates underneath and eventually five boxes were opened before Lina and Zelgadis, every one with only enough room for one fang to sit inside each.

The old merchant stood up from his seat on the floor and gestured to the boxes, "Ya can take yer pick of whatever one ya want."

Lina and Zelgadis talked with each other briefly, discussing which one they should take. They picked one in fairly good condition that was about medium sized and not much bigger than they needed for their purposes. Even though it was 'medium' sized it still weighed a good twenty pounds.

The sorceress reached for her coin purse while Zelgadis put the lid back on the box and moved it to the side and made to put the rest of Marstaf's boxes back together again.

"How much did you want for this?" Lina asked while counting out how much she had with her.

The old merchant rubbed his chin. "Hmm, how does five gold sound to you?"

Lina's eyebrows shot up. She was expecting to pay much more than that. "Five gold?" She asked him skeptically.

Marstaf chuckled, "Yea, that fang ya picked came from a dragon up in them mountains to the north who'd been in a scuffle with another. Me an my boy happened to see it too. Was when we were on our way here, back in the earliest parts o' spring. They was fighting over power or somethin'. The one that got his tooth knocked out came out on top in the end though. I asked 'im if he minded if'n we took his fang. Said it did him no good anymore so we got it for free."

He smiled at Lina, "Wouldn't be right if I charged ya an arm an a leg for something I got for nothin' and no effort no matter how valuable it's worth."

The sorceress tilted her head to the side. Marstaf was definitely cut from a different cloth that she was. If it had been her, she still would have charge full price and then some.

Lina shook her head with a smile, almost unable to believe what she was about to do, and reached into her coin purse and pulled out seven gold pieces. It was still much cheaper than she had expected to pay, but it was unlike her to not give the lesser amount and run.

She handed the money out to Marstaf, "Here's seven. Buy yourself a pair of glasses with the extra."

The old merchant looked happily surprised as he took the coins, "Mercy be! Thank ye kindly miss Lulu. I'll do just that!"

Zelgadis could scarcely believe it himself that Lina was being so generous. Old man Marstaf didn't know just how lucky he was to get the extra coins from her.

The merchant was easily likeable though. He was definitely the kind of old man that Zelgadis wouldn't mind meeting up with in a bar and listening to him tell all the stories he undoubtedly had over a couple of mugs of mead. He'd learned quite a few interesting and sometimes useful things from the stories Rodimus had told him that way.

The pair thanked the dusty old Marstaf and after a few more friendly words and a fond farewell, they eventually left the back alley shop. Lina lead the way down the streets with a happy and purposeful stride to her step as Zelgadis followed her, carrying the box that held the main ingredient for their latest project to even the score with Xelloss.

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><p>AN<p>

I hope Lina and Zel weren't too out of character in this chapter. I'm trying to show how their emotions and feelings and a bit of their personalities have been and are starting to change. I know I haven't gotten too much into Xelloss' head yet but there is a reason :3 and that's a secret!

Aachi's currency conversion for RC- 1 gold piece = 100 US dollars :P Lina expected to pay like 20 so giving 7 was still a huge deal.

I know this is the first time I mentioned what time frame we're looking at in this story and I said Lina was 19. We never really know _exactly_ how old she is during Slayers though. Only that she 'looks 15 or 16' So I'm gonna say that by the end of Slayers Evolution-R Lina was probably 18, so this story would be happening more or less a year after that. Oh and I think Zel was maybe 20 or so during Slayers… so I'm saying he's 23 here.

I really intended to write about what it is exactly that Lina and Zel are making in this chapter, but old man Marstaf totally invented himself and helped turn the chapter into a complete character/relationship development chapter for Lina and Zel lol. *shrug* oh well. I think it worked out well at least, and although he's an OC that invented himself, I really like Marstaf a lot. I might just have to have them bump into him again sometime. :P That stupid knife inserted itself into my story too! It was just supposed to be like a little easter egg or something but the more I thought about it, the more I thought how something like that might seem important to Lina and Zel now. Like a little special treasure. Now that they have it again I'm definitely going to have to weave it into the story to be at least a little important at some point…. Hmmm *starts plotting*

Next chapter will definitely reveal what Lina and Zel are plotting :D I can promise that!

I've read that there are really elves running around Lina's world but they're very rarely seen, and Lina herself has only met like two before. I honestly don't know the difference between the different elf races, but didn't really see a reason to research it because old man Marstaf wouldn't know the difference either LOL "blue skin and long pointy ears? Ya must be a night elf I reckon!" LOL

For those who have seen or read 'Howl's Moving Castle' you may have giggled to yourself when you saw 'Sophie's magic shop'. I know telling you is a spoiler, but in the original novel by Diana Wynne Jones, Sophie is actually a fledgling sorceress herself. She just doesn't realize she has magic capabilities until halfway through the book AND she's a red head with long red hair and even freckles. And with Howl and Xelloss sharing the same haircut in the movie version, it really makes me want to draw Xelloss as Howl and Lina as Sophie :3 Zel can be Calcifer! ...no… that might be weird LOL

OMG lots of Author's notes this time! Lots of little tidbits to share with you though! Lol

Please review! Marstaf will tell ya stories 'bout the old days!


	12. Twisted Sister

AN

Some of the tone from last chapter spilled over to the first part of this one. But I'm sure you'll be happy to know that the usual snarkyness and the abuse of Xelloss that you've come to expect from RC returns half way through the chapter. :D

Also, remember that mystery item Zel bought the first day of the festival with his pocket knife several chapters ago? Well, you finally get to know what it is! :3

* * *

><p>Lina and Zelgadis made a quick stop by a much more legitimate magic shop on their way through town. They purchased two sets of enchanted carving tools that could easily cut through something as tough as a dragon's fang and were on their way again.<p>

Ordinarily, Lina would have just bought some regular carving knives and enchanted them herself to save money, but they were short on time as it was already.

If the last two days were any indication, Xelloss would show up again in time to ensure they all shared the same bedding for another night and they wanted to be done, or at least mostly done, with their project before they saw him next.

There was no telling what Xelloss' own plans for the evening were, but judging from the things the demon had said to him that morning, Zelgadis was willing to bet that he didn't intend on going all the way with them just yet – though he wasn't willing to place any large wagers on that.

Regardless of the priest's plans, Lina and Zelgadis wanted to see their own plans come to fruition before Xelloss finally decided to bed them.

It was probably about three or four in the afternoon by the time Lina and Zelgadis had walked out of town and well into the quiet forest. They found a small clearing that was low on stray twigs and rocks and full of lush green grass and dropped their new purchases on the ground.

They had decided it was best to work on their little project out of sight of any and everyone. It wouldn't do them any good if they worked in Lina's room only to have Amelia come in and see them carving away at a golden dragon's fang. Nothing great could possibly come from that.

It was also important that Xelloss didn't find them until they were ready to be found. It would definitely spoil the surprise if he caught them while they were still working on their project – and more importantly, spoil the incredibly shocked look that would no doubt be on his face when the surprise was sprung. Their whole plan was worth the effort just for that alone, though they both knew there was an even better reward for finishing their task.

As it stood, Xelloss could find them with no effort at all whenever he wanted to. So, Zelgadis, as the more skilled user of spirit Shamanist magic, cast a barrier-like spell on the surrounding area to prevent Lina or himself from being found by magical or demonic means.

They could only hope that Xelloss hadn't been paying attention to their whereabouts before the spell was cast, or the effort would be for nothing. The Astral Hiding spell could only be placed on people and things in a certain area, not on the people or items themselves. It was a flawed spell for their purposes, but one of Rezo's own design. He had created it to keep his laboratories hidden from the ever knowing eye of the Mazoku. And since he had once assisted the Red Priest quite often, it was one of the first spells Zelgadis ever learned.

The initial enchantment the chimera cast on the area was probably good enough to keep Xelloss from finding them for a few days at the very least, but neither of them felt like taking any chances even though they didn't need that much time. Lina strengthened the already standing spell with her powers and when she was done, they were confident that Shabrinigdu himself wouldn't be able to find any trace of them from the Astral Plane.

Being discovered by sight on the Physical Plane was another story though. Not even Lina knew of any spell to cast invisibility. The only thing they could do about that was what they were already doing; hiding out deep enough in the woods that no person would be likely to stumble across them.

With their enchanted tools, Zelgadis easily sliced the fang into several sections, and he and Lina each took a piece and began carving, using Lina's notes and sketches for guidance.

Their conversation while they worked seemed to stay pretty close to the project at hand. They were making good time and after about an hour, they were about half way done with the first part of their work.

Zelgadis set his ivory and knife aside to crack his knuckles and stretch a bit and he suddenly remembered the item he had bought at the festival two days prior.

He'd almost forgotten about it! And here he was, with Lina all to himself for most of the day and he'd almost let his chance slip by.

The shaman felt around in his pocket and sighed just a bit in relief. He was glad he had remembered to put it back that morning. He emptied out the contents of the pocket, his new dark abalone handled pocket knife and the small pouch.

He put the knife back and bounced the small bag in the air in front of Lina, the movement and the jingling sound inside making her look up from her work.

She looked puzzled at the object in his hand for a moment before he told her with a small smirk, "I saw something I thought you'd like at the festival the other day and I hadn't had a chance to give them to you yet."

Lina set her ivory and knife down and reached her hand up to take the gift he was offering. They had already been sitting well within arm's reach of each other before, so she didn't need to move her hand very far to take the pouch from him.

She let the contents of the small bag fall into her open hand. Her eyes glittered at the treasure there and she smiled broadly, "They're beautiful!"

In her hand was a pair of earrings, almost a perfect match in color to the blue necklace Xelloss had given her. They didn't give a faint glow like the necklace, nor did they have any silver accents, but they were shaped like raindrops and there was a small illusion spell on them to make them appear as though they were actually large drops of translucent water.

It was an easy beautification spell, but that didn't make them any less attractive to Lina. Though it wasn't the earrings themselves that made her so appreciative.

The redhead reached over the short distance to hug Zelgadis and kiss him on the cheek, "Thanks Zel." She pulled away from him and eagerly set to taking off her old earrings and putting in her new ones.

When she was done, she placed her gold earrings in the pouch and asked him, "Well, how do I look?"

She smiled cutely and made an even cuter pose to show off. Her new earrings were about half the size of her golden ones but their watery blue color was even more noticeable against the reddish orange of her hair and they dangled from her ears just like the large water drops they were meant to resemble.

With Lina currently wearing Xelloss' necklace over her clothes and with the matching new earrings and the denim blue color of her outfit, Zelgadis considered her latest wardrobe to be complete - more so from the fact she now donned an item from each of her lovers rather than the matching colors of the ensemble.

Hell, as far as Zelgadis was concerned, her wardrobe would be complete if she wore his earrings and Xelloss' necklace and nothing else – in fact, it would be even better.

Instead of outwardly saying any of his thoughts, he simply smiled at her, with a touch of that happiness that had slipped into his features earlier that day, "You're beautiful no matter what you wear Lina."

The sorceress blushed cutely as he leaned over to place a tender kiss on her lips.

* * *

><p>Appearing in the archives of his master's mansion on Wolf Pack Island, Xelloss promptly dropped a small parcel onto the table among the books that lay scattered before a being who had the appearance of a young man.<p>

The 'young man' looked up, startled from the sudden intrusion on his reading and quickly saw with his golden irises and slitted pupils that so closely resembled his creator's, that it was his superior that had interrupted him - and with what could only be what he'd promised to bring him.

He smiled brightly, "Good afternoon Xelloss-sama!" Even more brightly, he gestured to the box on the table, "Is that what I think it is?"

Xelloss grinned mischievously at the other and placed a hand on top of the parcel to keep him from grabbing it and ripping it open, "I don't know. What do you think it is Xanas-kun?"

Xanas was Beastmaster Zelas's scholar. The sole purpose for his existence was to be a wealth of information for her. Unfortunately, compared to the thousands of years Zelas already had, it would still be quite some time yet before he could rattle off information for her benefit without having to do tons of research the old fashioned way first.

If someone had seen Xanas in the city, they would assume he was about twenty years of age. Though of course with Mazoku, twenty was the last likely number of years he'd actually been in existence. He had fluffy bright red hair that a human standing far enough away might mistake for fire with their inferior eyesight. He wore long robes not too different from what a scholarly human might, though most definitely not in the color he wore - his robes were mostly red with accents of black and gold.

Xanas tried not to pout, but it was hard when he _knew_ what was in the box and that he wanted it very much. "Surely it's those assorted chocolates you promised me for doing all this research for you."

The priest smiled benignly and pretended to forget all about the box that was still trapped under his hand. "How is that going by the way? Have you found anything?"

Xanas tried his best not to growl in frustration at his superior. Every Mazoku eventually discovered a human consumable that they desired nearly as much as the darkness of human emotions; Zelas had her wine and cigarettes, Xelloss had his pastries and Xanas had his chocolates. It wasn't the scholar's fault Beastmaster didn't let him travel off of Wolf Pack Island very often and it was infuriating that he had to wait on _Xelloss_ to bring him his treasured sweets most of the time.

Since he was designed only to be a source of information, Xanas was only given the barest minimum of strength to be able to assume human form - and that was really only for the sake of efficiency. It was quite enough power to kill a herd of normal humans with ease, but not enough to be able to defend himself against even a single golden dragon. That being the case, the redhead was only ever allowed to leave in the company of one of Beastmaster's stronger servants.

It made things difficult on the scholar, but it was well within his master's right to protect her investments. And although it did not take her much of her power to create Xanas, he was still an investment.

Xanas snapped the book he was reading closed and placed it down on the table, trying his best not to let Xelloss sense his frustration. "Not yet. There doesn't seem to be anything in Zelas-sama's library that could be related to your condition."

He gestured to the small unread stack of books off to the side of the table. "Those are all that's left that may have useful information about it, but neither Zelas-sama nor I am very hopeful of that." He started closing and stacking up the already read books that were left out on the table.

"If those really have nothing useful in them, I'm to leave tomorrow morning with Zelinas-senpai to start searching through Gaav-sama's old abandoned stronghold for his archives."

Xelloss opened his eyes in surprise, "Gaav?"

Xanas nodded his head, ignoring the informal way Xelloss had said the deceased Chaos Dragon's name, "Yes. Zelas-sama thought it would be best to start with searching through Gaav-sama or Phibrizo-sama's records. It's easy to understand that she wouldn't want word of this curious condition of yours to slip out to the remaining Mazoku lords if at all possible. It would be a challenge to do, but they could use the small window of time that you're not in your right mind to eliminate you to weaken Zelas-sama."

The priest nodded grimly, it was something he had worried about as well. As far as the other races were concerned, Mazoku were allied in their cause and reason for being; chaos and destruction. But, truth be told, there was always a struggle for power going on. Most of the time, they kept up pleasantries when they met and allied themselves when the need arose, but each Mazoku Lord would prefer it if they were the one and only Lord to rule the demon race under the sealed away Ruby Eye Shabrinigdu.

Xanas saw the seriousness on Xelloss' face and continued, "Between the two departed Lords, Zelas-sama thought it would be best to start with Gaav-sama's records since he had been trapped in a human body for such a long time. And whatever you're experiencing, clearly it has something to do with your humans."

Xelloss nodded in understanding, "I see. Starting with Gaav is the best course of action I suppose." His thoughts drifted off slightly, trying to remember the last time he'd seen the Chaos Dragon's fortress. Surely it was a sad comparison to what it once was by now.

The scholar nodded in turn and saw the door to the library open slowly and silently behind Xelloss. His face lit with a barely visible smirk as he gave Xelloss the only warning he would get, "Oh, by the way, I'm to inform you that Zelas-sama's guest arrived about an hour ago."

The priest's twitched in barely visible shock, "She did?" He swiftly searched the astral plane for the woman's presence but couldn't detect her at all. He said hastily, "Well then, Xanas-kun, thank you for your continuing efforts on my part but I must be off."

"In a hurry to leave so soon Xelloss?"

The purple hair demon whipped around at the new voice that came up behind him. If he had a heart it would surely have had an attack right about then by the sight of who was standing there. "Luna-san! What a… surprise!"

Lina's older sister stood in front of him, smiling up at him in a way that no one on the Golden Lord's Red World would enjoy seeing – not even a demon. This particular smile on the face of the Knight of Ceiphied always meant bad news for whomever she was giving it to.

"Xelloss." She nodded in greeting, still smiling creepily.

The priest hurriedly bid a parting farewell, doing his best to maintain his dignity and any sense of authority he may have had in the presence of _any other_ human. "That's a very interesting trick you've picked up Luna-san; the ability to mask your presence from the Astral Plane. It's such a shame that I cannot stay to ask how you learned it, but I have business to attend to elsewhere."

He gave a quick wave and a goodbye as he started to teleport away. However, this seemed to be exactly what Luna was waiting for. She snatched her hand up and right into the Astral rift Xelloss left behind as he disappeared. To the untrained eye, it would seem as though Xelloss had vanished and Luna had reached her hand into a pocket of nothingness to drag him back out again by the collar – all with an eerie smile that steadily grew more dangerous.

Xelloss was shocked, to say the least, to find himself once again in the library rather than where he had intended to be, and just barely noticeably nervous that he was in the angry clutches of one of the only humans that had enough power to end him on her own merit.

He blinked at her in surprise and did his best to smile and try to shrug off the intimidating, menacing aura she emitted. This particular kind wasn't as edible to the priest when it was being directed at him.

"My! Luna-san, you never cease to surprise me. Did you learn this ability from the knowledge of Ceiphied? Or perhaps Zelas-sama thought it would be an entertaining trick to teach you, if only to make me uncomfortable." He could feel his master's attention from the Astral Plane while he tried to free himself of Luna's ridiculously strong grasp. "No doubt Zelas-sama finds this to be amusing."

Seeing no reason to not manifest on the Physical Plane to witness the spectacle, Beastmaster appeared in the library herself. "I do find this to be quite entertaining, but it was not I who taught her." She smirked and placed a newly lit cigarette between her lips.

Xanas, who had torn open the box and started savoring his chocolates almost as soon as Xelloss tried to leave, also found the interaction amusing. However, he couldn't decide which tasted better; the fine chocolates or the icy cold rage that rolled of off Luna in waves.

Finally deciding that the chocolate and rage tasted best when enjoyed together, Xanas sat contently in his seat to watch the knight's inevitable torture of his superior.

Mazoku did not experience fear as humans did. What they had was more like a mere concern for their continuing existence. However, even though he was expecting the words that came from Luna's mouth, Xelloss felt the closest thing to what must be fear that he could ever remember experiencing outside of battle or his Master's displeasure with him.

"So," Luna started out as she removed her grip from the scruff of his shirt to wrap her arm around his shoulder in a false-friendly way, "Zelas tells me you've been sleeping with my little sister and her chimera friend."

Xelloss could feel the unpleasant kind of pain in her grip around his shoulders and tried to flit away again out of instinct only to find that she had somehow rooted him to the physical plane.

When his teleportation failed, he felt a small surge of panic. After all, he knew this woman was fully capable of ending his existence, and despite their desire for the destruction of all things, a Mazoku valued their own life above all else besides their Master's. It was sort of oxymoronic really, but he wasn't about to think on the complications of that for the time being. His only priority at the moment was to put as much space between himself and the Knight of Ceiphied as he possibly could.

The priest laughed nervously as he tried to wiggle free of Luna's grasp. It felt strangely familiar. He had played this game many times with her younger sister. Only this time, he wasn't just pretending to try and get out of the menacing grip. He really was.

Xelloss tried his best to maintain his composure and smiled as innocently as possible, "… Not to discredit my Lord and Master Zelas-sama," He stated the title with as much propriety and respect as he could without really sucking up, "But I have not slept with Lina or Zelgadis."

Whatever had given him the terrible idea that skirting around the issue by using a technicality might quell the anger of the Knight of Ceiphied, Xelloss wasn't sure. But he would definitely be thinking out his words more carefully when speaking with Luna in the future.

At lightning-fast speed, the demon priest found his head against the thick oak wooden table with enough force for a sickening '_crack'_ sound to be made and shaken off the walls of the library. She'd barely held back enough to not use his head to break straight through the table.

Xanas couldn't hold back a snicker and Zelas seemed to have shrugged off Xelloss' last ditch effort for self preservation about him saying she had been wrong about what she'd told Luna. He was paying for that mistake already anyway, and entertaining her while he learned his lesson, which was even better.

Luna yanked up the demon priest to her eye level by his hair that was still in the partial pony tail style from before and moved her hands to once again grip him by the collar of his shirt and said in a deathly even voice, "No amount of wordplay will get you out of this Xelloss. Even if you're not sleeping with Lina yet, I know that it's what you're planning on."

It was probably the crack to the head but the instant response Xelloss' had in mind was an age old joke about 'not getting any sleep' that he was more likely to tell Lina or Zelgadis. But thankfully, his rationality seemed to kick in again just before he could voice his thoughts. Sticking his foot in his mouth now would only serve to get him in more trouble.

Xelloss smiled nervously at her and tried in his most valiant of efforts to calm Luna down. At least he had experience dealing with her sister's temper to work with.

"Luna-san, I think I can understand your concerns." He tried to voice his next words as delicately as possible, "But… with all due respect… it is not as though I have tricked her or Zelgadis into anything…" He stood at his full height and looked her straight in the eyes with as much of his usual confidence and self assurance he could assemble while in the death grip of, arguably, the most powerful human in the known world and someone who could stand toe to toe in battle with a Mazoku Lord without needing to summon a higher power for help.

"The…" He thought for a moment for the best word possible, "relationship between you sister, Zelgadis and myself is something that each of us wants and agreed to." He continued to look her in the eye with unwavering determination, "I admit to being the one to put things into motion, but I did so by giving them all the information they would need and plenty of time to make their own decisions about it. And it is not something that I would ever undo – no matter how you chose to punish me for it."

Xelloss continued to stare her down, almost daring the woman to be so bold as to try to kill him where he stood. He would stand his ground and if it came down to a fight, he would definitely give her a run for her money, and maybe even win if he was lucky enough. A battle against the Knight of Ceiphied wasn't something he'd ever planned on, but he was willing to do so if it was necessary to get what he wanted.

The world was deathly silent for Xelloss as he continued to glare defiantly at Luna while she narrowed her eyes and seemed to be judging him.

Something seemed to shift in the very small amount that he could see of her eyes, hidden behind her mess of bangs, and Luna snorted once before her deadly smile turned into something slightly less horrifying and she yanked him by the collar of his shirt once more for emphasis.

"Fine. But if you're messing around with Lina just so you can break her heart for the dark emotions, I will end you – and I won't make it quick either."

Xelloss was able to smirk at this while still staring her down with the same steady eyes that told her all the information she needed to know about where he stood on the subject. "I can assure you that that is most definitely not the case. But even if it were, I can't imagine that Lina or Zelgadis would leave very much of me behind for you to torture, though you'd be welcome to try."

Luna looked into his face for a few more moments and all at once she released her grip on him, a pleasant smile replaced the murderous one and she pat him on the shoulder like they were the best of friends. "Well alright then. If its how you say it is then I guess I can give you my blessing."

Xelloss felt more shocked than he was when he'd first turned around to see Luna standing behind him in the archives. He could feel his jaw hang uselessly for a moment before he put it to use in a very unimpressive fashion. "…What?"

The elder Inverse girl just laughed, "Do you need me to spell it out for you? I approve of your relationship with my sister." She put her hands on her hips, "I still need to meet this Zelgadis yet, but I suppose that will have to wait."

The priest could only nod numbly. He wasn't really sure what he was supposed to say to something like that. 'Thank you' was probably the appropriate response that human mates said when their partner's family approved of them. But honestly, he never even planned to seek the acceptance of either Lina's family nor Zelgadis' - if he even had one left. To do so was completely unnecessary and just plain absurd.

Without warning, Luna's countenance changed once again and her pleasant smile was wiped off her face, replaced by the threatening one once more and she glared daggers at him, "Oh. But if Lina gets knocked up anytime soon, I'll make you pay for it."

One of Xelloss' eyebrows arched and he could hear Xanas trying not to laugh somewhere behind him, "Luna-san, you know very well that Mazoku are incapable of reproducing as humans do."

She crossed her arms and scowled at him, "I know you can't, but this chimera can still sire children can't he? If he gets Lina pregnant I'll hold you responsible."

Xelloss tilted his head to the side and since Xanas' snickering turned into all out laughter, he knocked the box of chocolates off of the table and onto the floor in one fluid sweeping motion of his staff.

Completely ignoring the indignant 'Hey!' from the younger Mazoku, Xelloss frowned at the knight, "That hardly seems fair Luna-san."

She just continued to glare at him, "You're the one who started everything aren't you? Without your meddling, how likely would it have been for my sister and this Zelgadis to get involved with each other?"

Xelloss' eyebrows knit together in thought for a moment before he conceded, "Ah, I suppose you do have a point." He sighed and nodded, "Very well. I'm sure Lina has already taken precautions herself on this matter, but I will discuss it with them.

Luna's cold look dissolved once more and she smiled pleasantly, "Excellent."

She nodded to herself and looked around the room, "Now who's up for a game?" Her smile seemed to grow as she realized something, "Hey! We have just the right number and ratio to play Brass Rackets!"

If Xelloss ever had any doubts about Luna being bipolar, they all went flying out the window in a spectacular burst of flames. If he had to guess, he'd say that it was somehow related to how her human mind adapted to the overwhelming power and knowledge that came with being the Knight of Ceiphied.

* * *

><p>It didn't take long for Xelloss to wish he'd never even heard of Brass Rackets, let alone make the horrible mistake of teaching his Mistress and Luna how to play the game last year.<p>

Luna and Xanas had been on the same team opposing Xelloss and Beast Master. Though Zelas' only effort to play the game was to dress up in a sport's skirt and stand on the court, smoking her cigarette and not even bothering to move her racket toward the ball.

The only one who would even dare to challenge Beastmaster to stop being a stick in the mud and get into the game was Luna. However, she didn't seem to care enough about the actual game enough to worry about it. She was too busy making a target out of Xelloss' face to care if Zelas actually played or not.

And since Luna cheerfully pummeled Xelloss with magically enhanced balls, Xanas saw his opportunity to do so as well.

Suffice it to say, everyone enjoyed the impromptu game except for the priest, who had eventually lost count of how many times he'd been beamed in the head.

When he had been finally allowed to take his leave of Wolf Pack Island, Xelloss couldn't get out of there fast enough.

He teleported straight into Taforashia, appearing on a branch high up in one of the large trees. He had been planning to find one or both of his lovers to elicit some of their delicious embarrassment or anger to feast on, only to discover they seemed to have disappeared completely.

Xelloss very nearly growled in frustration. "Did everyone learn how to hide themselves from me today?" He asked a passing squirrel, who only stared at him in return before holding up its acorn in offer to the Beast Priest as if it would make him feel better.

The demon sighed and shook his head at the offer as if he'd been talking to a human rather than a rodent. "No thank you."

The squirrel held the acorn tightly as if to say 'Well more for me then!' and sat on the branch to eat it as Xelloss flitted away and back to the palace to see if anyone knew where Lina and Zelgadis had gone.

As soon as he landed on the green of the lawns of the palace, the demon was met with the kind of sight he daydreamed of.

The lawns and garden were utterly destroyed. The ground was missing large chunks of dirt, trees were cut in half or simply cut down, flowerbeds had been trampled on, the crew of gardeners was huddled in a circle either crying or yelling in outrage and in the middle of the whole fiasco, Gourry and Zangulus were still having their duel.

Xelloss looked up at the sun that would be setting soon - that could only mean the two swordsmen had been fighting for about seven hours or so. He quickly spotted the small group of spectators who looked to be incredibly bored by this point and walked over to them.

Amelia, Pakota, Martina, Sylphiel and several palace staff sat on the steps that led out to the gardens and looked to be in various states of falling asleep when he came up to them.

Xelloss quirked his eyebrow and addressed the prince, "Should you be allowing them to continue Pakota-san? It seems like there is going to be much more work for your staff as it is."

The prince shook himself awake to look up at Xelloss and frowned, "We tried to stop them already. They're so far into their fight, it's like nobody else on the planet exists besides the two of them."

Sylphiel had been one of the very few who still watched the fight with as much interest as when it had started, "It's not like Gourry-sama to act this way. It's like he's another person when he fights with Zangalus-san." She said worriedly.

Martina sleepily yawned and stretched. She said to Sylphiel, "No kidding. Zangulus is usually much better about paying attention to his surroundings than this. Something about Gourry just gets under his skin I guess." If she'd noticed Xelloss' presence in her half-awake state of mind she didn't show it.

It was painfully clear that the humans had grown bored of watching the duel several hours ago but stayed to watch if only to cheer their comrades on. Though that idea was absolutely ridiculous to Xelloss since it was quite obvious to him that Zangulus and Gourry didn't even realize they were there – therefore they couldn't even appreciate their support. They probably wouldn't even notice if the Golden Lord herself descended upon the world and returned all to nothingness.

Xelloss didn't think this group would have much information for him but he tried anyway. "I don't see Lina-san or Zelgadis-san among you." He started out nonchalantly, as if only asking about them since they weren't present. "Did they get tired of the monotony and go inside?"

The ever-present clang of swords sang out in the distance as Pakota shook his head and stretched a bit, the movement slightly jostling the sleeping Amelia who had made a pillow out of his shoulder. "The last time I saw them was when I saw you."

Martina continued to watch Zangulus and Gourry through bleary eyes, so incredibly sleepy that she probably didn't even realize she was addressing Xelloss or that he was even there. "I saw them this afternoon in town. They said they were going to a magic shop for something or other."

Xelloss sighed in annoyance, which no one seemed to be awake enough to notice. This group wasn't helpful at all, and their boredom only made him hungry. It was like staring at a fully set table with no food to be found anywhere.

"Well, as dreary as the lot of you are right now, I think I'm going to take my leave and find my dinner elsewhere." He bid them farewell and flitted away before any of them came to their senses enough to realize what he meant.

It was after dark when Xelloss could finally feel Lina and Zelgadis' presence again. He immediately left the restaurant where he'd been annoying the waitress by only ordering water and taking up space in the crowded place.

When he reappeared where he sensed them to be, he found himself in a small clearing in the woods, the darkness of the night kept away by a small campfire.

Standing in front of him, Lina nudged Zelgadis, "See? I told you he'd show up as soon as that spell was down."

The chimera bobbed his head, "I never disagreed with you."

Xelloss looked around the small encampment curiously, "This is where you've been hiding? And just what have you been doing?"

Lina brushed off his questioning, she had obviously been prepared for it. "We were seeing if the Astral Hiding spell really worked of course."

The demon looked at her curiously, "And why would you need a concealment spell?"

The sorceress seemed to be prepared for this question as well, "In case we need to hide of course! We don't know who our attempted assassin is after all. It's best if we know how to hide from any and everyone for whatever reason."

Xelloss wasn't buying it. "So why didn't you just tell me what you were doing and ask me to help see if the spell worked?"

Lina smiled nervously, she hadn't been ready for that one but she came up with an excuse easily enough, "Because it's more fun not to tell you."

The demon looked at her doubtfully, but didn't try to question them any more about it.

As he stared at her, he noticed her new earrings and immediately came over to her to inspect them, "What charming earrings, Lina."

He held one aloft in his hand to examine it and Lina blushed, "Zel gave them to me today."

Xelloss smirked, "Ah, I see. You wish to put your mark on her as well Zelgadis?"

Zelgadis scowled darkly and was about to protest or argue that it wasn't like that, but he was suddenly inspired about how he could move them into the next phase of his and Lina's plans.

The demon easily picked up on the shaman's shift of emotions to that of mischief and desire as Zelgadis walked up to him slowly with a smirk on his face. "Maybe. You wouldn't be jealous of that would you Xelloss?" He had a primal grin on his face, complete with fangs showing and a heated look in his eyes. "Would you feel better if I left my mark on you as well? I'm afraid I don't have any more jewelry to give… though you'd probably be more interested in a mark of a different sort anyway."

Xelloss' eyes widened as the shaman grabbed him roughly. One hand grabbed him by the hip, the other by the side of his face, as he licked the demon's neck just below his ear briefly before biting it with his sharp demonic teeth.

The priest gasped in pleasant surprise. He'd only been teasing Zelgadis about the earrings. He hadn't even remotely thought that his response would be this. In fact, this behavior was incredibly odd for the chimera. He'd never instigated anything between himself and the Mazoku before; he'd only just recently started to willingly respond to it.

In his distracted mind, Xelloss realized that there really weren't that many previous events to judge from though. Perhaps it was just Zelgadis gaining confidence in their activities much quicker than the demon had anticipated – or perhaps the chimera was up to something.

After the trying afternoon the priest had, he really couldn't bring himself to care either way as long the shaman kept up his current actions.

Xelloss smiled loftily and dismissed his staff into thin air and moved his hands to wrap around behind Zelgadis' back where he removed his gloves as the other man licked the minor wound on his physical body, "If I had known you would react this way when I teased you about your show of affection toward Lina, I would have done so sooner."

Zelgadis opened his mouth to make a clever retort that he could suddenly no longer remember as Xelloss' fingers found their way into his hair.

He moaned and held the priest tighter as demon fingers worked their way through his needle strands to massage his scalp as no human hand could safely do the same.

Xelloss was pleased by the shaman's reaction and even more so by the heated kiss Zelgadis seared his lips with.

Lina smirked at the two of them. As long as Zelgadis could remember what their plan was, this would probably end up being easier than she thought it would.

The sorceress came up behind Xelloss and reached one of her hands around through the small space between his and Zelgadis' bodies to embrace him. With the other she tapped the chimera on the arm to get his attention without the demon noticing.

Zelgadis took the cue, and while Xelloss had let one of his hands fall from his hair to cover Lina's that rested on his chest, the chimera moved his own hands up to the clasp on the demon's cloak.

The priest smirked against the youth's mouth. Their attempts to disrobe him were completely unnecessary, but he decided to humor the humans anyway, and allowed it to seem as though the chimera had unfastened the cloak and let Lina remove it from his shoulders.

She quickly moved it out of the way and tossed it to the side to be used later. Zelgadis broke the kiss with the priest long enough for Lina to quickly rid Xelloss of his ever-present bag and tossed it aside as well.

The sorceress moved down the length of the Mazoku's body to his feet where she began trying to remove his boots. Again, Xelloss almost giggled at their desire to remove his clothing in a very human fashion, but allowed her to do so anyway. Really there was no harm in it. It was just that it was much slower than his method.

He was momentarily distracted from his thoughts as Zelgadis roughly grabbed him by both wrists and held them low enough behind the demon's back that his body arched backwards slightly and his neck was left exposed to the shaman's lips and teeth.

Xelloss allowed the younger man to take the more aggressively dominant role and purred in delight as Zelgadis nipped and bit at his neck, alternating between tender and harsh, while he rocked his hips against the demon, leaving no question if the chimera was aroused yet or not.

The priest was fully enjoying the confidence and dominance his lover's were trying to convey to him – right up to the moment he heard four simultaneous clicking sounds and Lina and Zelgadis abruptly stepped away from him as if to examine their handiwork.

His lavender eyes blinked owlishly in confusion as he looked between them and a pair of bracelets and anklets that he now wore.

He was just about to ask about the jewelry - Zelgadis had said he didn't have any for him after all. But before he could voice his question, his lovers' lips curled into roguish leers and Lina opened her mouth to say something of her own.

"_Bind_!"

Xelloss gaped in utter disbelief as the red colored relief patterns carved in the ivory bracelets changed to a much more vibrant shade and glowed with magic just before they snapped together behind his back and out of his sight.

His eyes widened even more dramatically as he tried to free himself only to find that he was unable to, and he wasn't even given very much time to try as Zelgadis called out his 'Word of Power'.

"_Restrain_!"

The anklets began to glow the same magically amplified red as the bracelets and snapped themselves together in the same way.

With his feet bound, Xelloss immediately lost his balance and with his hands restrained behind his back he couldn't even catch himself as he fell face first onto the dirt and grass ground of the forest floor.

Xelloss instinctively fought against the restraints. They weren't jewelry - they were shackles! He couldn't break free of them with his strength and was incredibly displeased to find that he couldn't teleport out of them either.

It was as though the restraints kept all of his strength and powers sealed and somehow even trapped his Astral Body as well - which should be an absolutely absurd notion. But with a quick inspection of himself on the Astral Plane, he saw that it was true. Four red glowing rings, each the Astral representation of one of the four shackles, wrapped around his Astral Body, binding him from that side just as securely as they did on the Physical Plane.

He looked up at the humans, and snarled with as much deadly venom as he did in any battle – ignoring the fact that his face was covered in dirt and grass, and trying to ignore the curious sting of emotion he felt even more. Mazoku couldn't feel betrayed - that would just be ridiculous.

"_What's the meaning of this_?" He hissed at them frostily.

* * *

><p>OMG please don't kill me! O_o I know this chapter leaves off at a horrible cliffhanger.<p>

:D Actually ch 12 and 13 were supposed to all be one chapter but I realized I would have to split it up cus it was way too long. It's all their fault *points finger at the cast of RC* they're conspiring against me! They keep on doing more stuff than I plan for! :P

I was debating whether or not to name the chapter 'Twisted Sister' because it kind of spoils the surprise that Luna shows up, but the title just suits her so much! And come on, let's be honest here… how many of you were waiting for Luna to show up since the mention of a mystery woman in chapter 5? *raises hand* I know the whole Zelas/Luna thing is nothing original but it suits my story purposes very well :D

Not a whole lot is ever really told about Luna in Slayers - or Zelas either for that matter – But she would have to be ridiculously strong to be the knight of Ceiphied and there's probably a good reason that Lina's so terrified of her… How those two things translated into her being bipolar… I'm not really sure…lol it just seemed to fit

As for Zelas… I kind of imagine she gets bored a lot. Immortality has to get boring at some point.

Unlike my other OC's to date, Xanas actually has an important role in the plot of this story. He's necessary in revealing what the heck's going on with Xelloss. I hope you like the guy, cus he'll be back.

I think you will enjoy chapter 13 'Not-So-Silent Forest' very very much :3


	13. NotSoSilent Forest

AN

The chapter title is 'Not-So-Silent Forest' but the site doesn't like '-' in the chapter titles for some reason.

NC-17 warning for some fairly intense sadism/masochism kinky lemony stuff. We're talking about a demon, a demon/human/golem chimera and a girl who seems to get off on killing and beating the crap out of bandits… and beating up her friends too – you knew this was coming. :P

If you need an outlined warning, here it is: WARNING for bondage, S and M, blood play (well demonic astral blood-like stuff play), knife play, whipping, oral sex, mutual masturbation, rough treatment, talk about rape and maybe dubious consent (but probably not. Xelloss maybe tied up but he wants it :P )… and I think that's it besides the standard touching, kissing, biting, etc.

This chapter is pretty much entirely shameless, detailed, pornographic foreplay. I hope you enjoy it! :D

If demon kinky S and M stuff isn't your thing, I guess you could technically skip this chapter. There's not really any plot in it aside from a few paragraphs about what Xelloss is thinking. Aside from that it's pretty much all just gratuitous fanservice. Main story plot will return next chapter :3

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><p>Lina and Zelgadis felt their blood run cold. They'd never been on the receiving end of one of Xelloss' truly malicious death glares before. They quickly shook it off, reminding themselves that the initial shock on his face and the current menace he exhibited were all part of the response they were expecting from him – and it would make his next reaction all the more fun.<p>

Lina crouched down beside him and rested her elbows on her knees and smiled at him just as happy as can be. "What's the matter Xelloss? Zel and I thought for sure you'd like this new little game."

She gave a cute mock-pout, like a little girl whose handmade gift didn't go over as well as she expected. "We worked all afternoon on these cuffs and we even used a type of magic neither of us is very fond of to make them just for you." Her look quickly turned mischievous again, "We thought for sure you'd enjoy being bound in a way you truly couldn't break free of – what with your masochism and all."

The snarl was wiped clean off of Xelloss' face only to be replaced by a blank look and a pair of wide eyes. Lina could almost see the calculations being added up in his head, as if he wasn't sure if one plus one equaled two anymore.

His two lovers grinned quite smugly before Xelloss' shocked mind fully comprehended what was actually going on. As soon as he did, the biggest perverted smile and twinkling demonic eyes they'd ever seen appeared on his face.

"Oh my! Well if that's the case, why go through the trouble of tricking me into them? If you had told me of their purpose I would have put them on myself!"

Lina grinned haughtily, "Mazoku aren't exactly the trusting sort. Would you really have willingly put on binding cuffs that left you completely and totally vulnerable?"

Xelloss tilted his head to the side slightly and thought for a moment. How would that have happened? 'Hey Xelloss, we made a set of cuffs for you. They'll seal every bit of your strength and powers and leave you completely helpless, but if you wear them we promise we'll make you enjoy it.'

Well, Mazoku never really spent much time thinking about 'what-ifs' anyway.

The fact of the matter was that he was effectively restrained and completely at their mercy – though if he understood the situation correctly, it wouldn't be very much mercy. And the thought of what they might do to him excited his demon blood.

Lina continued to grin, "Even if you would have actually agreed to putting them on, it was just more fun this way. I mean, how often do we get to see you with a shocked look on your face Xelloss?" She laughed heartily, "I wish you could have seen it! This one was priceless!"

The sorceress laughed hard enough that she had to wipe a tear of mirth from her eye and Xelloss huffed with a pout. He was grateful they hadn't seen the looks on his face that afternoon on Wolf Pack Island. They'd probably never let him live it down if they did.

Although, they would probably have been too preoccupied with the other people present to pay much attention to his facial expressions.

The demon smirked smugly. "So…" He drawled out, "Now that you have me bound, do either of you even know what to do with me?" He wiggled one of his eyebrows suggestively.

Predictably, they both blushed but twisted smiles came to their faces and Zelgadis was the one to speak up, "Actually, we were curious to find out just how much of a masochist you really are."

Xelloss' smile twisted even darker than theirs did, "Is that so? Well you're more than welcome to find out. I'm in no position to stop you." He continued to smirk from where he still lay prone on the ground, unable to even move into a sitting position. "Not that I would even if I could."

The priest's eyebrows knit together in concern for a moment as he realized just how incredibly vulnerable he was, "Quick question though. Say we suddenly came under attack; how fast can these restraints be undone?"

Zelgadis crouched down to the ground next to Xelloss while Lina spread out the demon's cloak on the grass nearby like a picnic cloth. "Lina or I only need to say one word to deactivate the spell on the cuffs and you'll have full use of your powers again."

The priest grinned, "Sounds simple enough. And what word would that be?"

The chimera's smile grew, as if he'd caught Xelloss with his hand in the cookie jar, "We're not stupid Xelloss. If we told you the 'Word' then it would deactivate the spell." He grabbed the demon by the front of his shirt roughly and lifted him up to where he could sit up on his own knees with his ankles still bound, "besides, I thought you wanted to play this game."

Xelloss chuckled, "Oh I do! But I'm afraid being a trickster has become so much of a habit that I don't even realize I'm doing it much of the time."

The chimera rolled his eyes, "It figures."

Lina leaned over Zelgadis to look the demon over with a blush, "So Xelloss, what's your threshold for pain anyway? You don't even seem to bat an eyelash at my punches, but you obviously enjoy the ones from Zel, and I've heard you scream in what could be nothing but agony at the hands of Gaav."

The demon smiled up at her with that familiar smirk and they knew he'd be wagging his finger if he could, "That's a secret." When he sensed their flare of annoyance he added, "Besides, finding out for yourselves is what you intend to do now isn't it? It would take all the fun out of it if I simply told you."

Lina rolled her eyes, "Well I thought I should ask. I wouldn't want to use a spell that could kill you on accident or anything."

Xelloss brightened up and grinned happily, as if she had told him she'd be giving him a lap dance rather than inflicting pain on him, "Oh? You plan to use spells? You're both already more bold and adventurous in these pleasurable endeavors of ours than I previously gave you credit for." He wiggled his eyebrows some more and smiled with a sparkle in his demonic eyes, "I like it."

Lina and Zelgadis blushed angrily, "Did you really expect Zel and me to keep on playing like nervous little virgins forever?"

Xelloss outright laughed and gave her a lustful look, "No, but I honestly expected to take your virginity first before either of you tried to take the lead in our bedroom activities."

Lina blushed some more and scowled at him, "Well that's not what's happening." And she threw in just for something else to say, "And this isn't a bedroom anyway."

This only served to make Xelloss' smile grow wider, "So I noticed." He briefly glanced around at the darkened forest surrounding them, "I had no idea either of you were already so kinky underneath all that prudishness." He gave a long happy sigh as if reminiscing, "Ah, if only I'd known my influence would bring out your darker, salacious sides so quickly, I would have savored your innocent, shy nervousness much more."

"You better watch what you say to get negative emotions from us Xelloss." Lina smirked at him smugly, "We might just decide to leave you out here all tied up and by yourself without even the benefit of what we were planning to do to you to enjoy in your memories."

"Ah, but would you truly do that?" He winked at them, "Surely you would both be back before the sun even rose to finish what you started."

Zelgadis grinned wickedly, "Are you so sure? Maybe, we should strip you naked and leave you bound for whatever person or creature to come along and either have their way with you or kill you. With these cuffs, you can't defend yourself anymore than a kitten can."

Xelloss smiled at him knowingly through dark lavender eyes, "Must we play these games right now when we'd rather be doing something else? We all know neither of you would be able to do such a thing. You would miss me if I ceased to exist and as for someone else claiming this body…" He trailed off and leaned in on his knees as close as he could to Zelgadis with his hands and feet bound, "…Well, let's just say I already know what your possessive and greedy emotions taste like, and I highly doubt either of you will be willing to share with anyone outside of our little trio any time soon."

Zelgadis growled and moved out of his crouch to sit on his knees and grabbed Xelloss by the front of his shirt roughly and shook him, "Damn you, smug Mazoku. You think you know everything don't you?"

Xelloss only smiled, just as smug as he was accused of being, "Don't I?"

The chimera snarled in frustration, nothing he could say would possibly give him the upper hand over Xelloss now. So he resorted to the easy option of taking advantage of the demon's helplessness. It was what the demon wanted him to do anyway.

Zelgadis' strong hand quickly and easily ripped right through the front of the priest's shirt and the cloth bindings at his waist, leaving his chest and stomach exposed to view. The chimera only had a moment to smirk in smug satisfaction. It was quickly replaced with shocked confusion when Xelloss gasped and yelped in a mixture of pleasure and pain as he'd been unprepared for his clothing to be ripped in half.

The demon moaned dazedly and looked up to see the bewildered faces of his lovers and chuckled lightly with hazy eyes. "I thought for sure that you two would have noticed, but you haven't have you? My clothing is actually a part of my physical body."

Lina and Zelgadis' grins returned to them with an even more sadistic light than before.

The redhead had a dangerous twinkle in her eyes as she pulled out the black abalone handled pocket knife Zelgadis had given her earlier to hang onto for just this kind of reason, "Is that so?"

Xelloss watched as she sauntered slowly around him and Zelgadis until she was behind his back. His anticipation continued to rise as he sensed her move to sit on the ground behind him. Even more so as the chimera in front of him moved his hands to grip the torn edges of his shirt and bent his head forward so he could run his fangs along the priest's newly exposed skin.

The demon gasped and moaned in delightfully painful ecstasy as Zelgadis seductively licked his collarbone while Lina took her time slicing the back of his shirt with the knife from collar to hem.

With his top now completely cut in half, the remnants pooled around Xelloss' bound wrists in shreds, leaving an eyeful of the lithe demon's toned upper body.

Lina ran an ungloved hand along the smooth contours of his exposed, slightly muscular upper arms and back and was assaulted by the strangest urge to run her tongue along his perfect spine.

Xelloss shivered slightly at the sensation before another gasp and moan escaped him when Zelgadis tore straight through the seam along the front of his pants, completely exposing his arousal to the night air.

The chimera leaned back to enjoy the sight. The demon sat on his knees with them spread out wide enough to keep himself upright with his ankles bound together underneath him. The front of his pants were ripped just enough to leave his erection without anything to hide it from view. He had leaned slightly back into Lina's hold and she had moved one of her hands around to his front to stroke it against the smooth skin of his stomach. His upper body was fully exposed, save for the little bits of his forearms that the shreds of his shirt still clung to, kept from falling off completely only by the cuffs keeping his hands bound behind his back.

All of this was incredibly arousing to see but arguably the best part was the hazy lust in the demon's eyes and the way his normally perfectly kept hair had become tousled, locks were falling from the ponytail he had been wearing while his face was still slightly dirty from his fall earlier. The overall picture definitely gave the impression that Xelloss was wanton with masochistic desire and was thoroughly enjoying being restrained and completely submissive despite the fact that he naturally took the dominant role.

The chimera grinned with dark longing and licked his lips unconsciously, "I could get used to seeing this." He leaned back in close to Xelloss, "You, all tied up, completely helpless," he moved in closer to speak within a hair's breadth of the demon's lips, "with your 'clothes' in shreds and that look in your eyes." His smirk turned even darker as he dug his stony fingers into Xelloss' hips roughly, "It makes me want to cause you to scream in agonizing pleasure."

The priest gasped lightly at the grip and chuckled darkly himself, "Now that you're finally giving into your sadistic tendencies, you can fully appreciate all the satisfaction it gives you. Especially when your victim enjoys the attentions as much as I do." He grinned devilishly, "Although, there is still much fun to be had when your prey is unwilling… ah but I suppose for the two of you, it's best to leave that type of sadism to the battlefield." He winked at Zelgadis, "I will never be unwilling… though if you should ever be interested in that sort, I could always pretend that I wasn't."

Zelgadis shivered slightly at the thought, "If you're referring to rape, I'm not interested, pretended or otherwise. It's bad enough we've let you corrupt us to getting involved in this much."

The demon's smirk was shady and all knowing, "You can't blame everything on me Zelgadis. The both of you were already enjoying inflicting pain on others before I ever even came along. I merely got you interested in the idea of incorporating it into nighttime activities."

Zelgadis flashed a smirk briefly just before backhanding Xelloss across the face hard with his stone hand, "You're right – I did enjoy that."

Xelloss gasped and turned his head back to look at Zelgadis through slitted eyes that gleamed with demonic glee, "Since you're finally letting loose, I expect neither of you to hold back on me." He stopped to ponder something a moment, "Well… barring any holy spell of course. I'm not _that_ masochistic." He laughed.

Zelgadis chuckled roguishly, "We weren't planning on holding back, though we did decide to start off small and work our way up. Just to see where your thresholds were."

Xelloss smiled happily, "Be my guest."

Lina smirked behind him and dug her nails as hard into his stomach as she could, dragging them across his faux flesh, but he only sighed contently as if she had merely caressed him. It seemed to be just as she thought; she simply wasn't physically strong enough to make him gasp at her rough touch as Zelgadis could.

She still had a few things to try first before she moved onto magic though.

Lina already pretty much knew that her punches and kicks did almost nothing to the demon, but he seemed to enjoy teeth sinking into his false skin a lot. She licked his neck briefly before biting into the flesh as hard as she could.

For all her effort, her human sized fangs barely broke his imitation skin but he made a content purring noise. He seemed to be consciously making sounds in order to convey how much pleasure she was giving him. It was much easier than telling her how she made him feel.

Lina wasn't too happy that she couldn't get the same reactions from Xelloss as Zelgadis could with his inhuman fangs and rough hands, but she suddenly remembered when she had bit the demon's tongue a few days prior and grinned.

The sorceress came around to his front, Zelgadis making room for her, and she straddled one of Xelloss' thighs and blushed as her leg brushed up against his exposed arousal.

Lina put a hand on either side of his face and gave him a forceful and demanding kiss that she quickly followed up with a bite to his lip that actually broke the soft skin there.

The priest moaned and eagerly reciprocated the passionate kiss, quickly getting his tongue involved and gasped, moaning out in pleasure as she bit down hard on the muscle.

Lina broke the kiss and pulled away, quite satisfied with herself before bringing out the pocket knife she still had in hand.

Xelloss' eyebrows drew together and he gave a long low groan as Lina dragged the blade of the ordinary knife along the skin of his upper chest and she watched in fascination as small traces of his black demon blood trickled slowly from the shallow cut.

The priest watched her with eagerness through half-lidded eyes as Lina chanted a quick Astral Vine spell on the pocket knife. Xelloss whimpered slightly before groaning in painful bliss as the enchanted knife cut across his perfectly flat stomach, much deeper than the shallow cut she had left on his chest. In fact, it was a deep enough cut that if he had been human it could have been a fatal wound. But since his physical body was just a detailed shell, the cut on his stomach was just as non-life threatening as a cut on his foot would have been.

Lina and Zelgadis definitely liked the submissive whimpering sound the ever smug demon had made and sought to make him do it again.

The redhead moved off of Xelloss' thigh and stood up in front of him. With a smile well suited for a dominatrix, Lina placed one of her booted feet up on the demon's shoulder. The position put her clothed nether region right in front of the priest's face.

His heightened demon senses allowed him to smell her arousal much earlier, but now it was simply intoxicating. Xelloss was certain she was already incredibly wet. He licked his lips and hoped she was about to demand he remove her clothing with his teeth or something similar. He badly wanted to taste her delicious wetness again.

That wasn't the case, but her plan was just as good.

Lina smirked down at him, "I bet you like to be whipped don't you Xelloss?"

He smiled devilishly back up at her in a way that she understood he wasn't going to answer her. His silence didn't bother her though. It only made her grin more.

The sorceress quirked her eyebrow at him while she smiled, as if to say 'Well, you're pretty much asking for it', and roughly forced him forward onto the ground by her foot.

Even when Lina moved away from him, Xelloss stayed in the kneeled position with his forehead touching the ground that she had left him in. His disheveled hair fell around his face to hide a huge smile of anticipation.

He would have preferred to have his arms bound in front of him rather than behind him, if only to expose more of his back to their attentions. Since the cuffs had rushed around behind his back to bind him rather than simply snap together in front, he figured that it was probably just how they were made. He'd have to discuss altering them a bit with Lina and Zelgadis later.

When he heard Zelgadis cast Balus Rod, Xelloss knew the chimera had decided to take his turn. He wasn't surprised he was already jumping into spells; they already knew how he responded to Zelgadis' physical roughness.

Xelloss howled as the magic casted whip of light struck his skin only to be immediately followed by a whimpering moan and a small shiver.

Zelgadis whipped the demon several times across his back and upper arms, each one eliciting more sounds from the demon than the last. By the time the chimera dismissed the spell and propped Xelloss back up to sit on his knees, the priest seemed to be stuck alternating between whimpering moans and panting despite the fact he didn't even need to breathe.

As the chimera looked him over, the demon's purple eyes were dazed and unfocused with intense desire and his mouth hung open slightly with the need to kiss or suck on the next body part that came close to them.

Zelgadis demon aspect couldn't resist those bruised and bleeding parted lips and quickly swooped down to claim them roughly with his own. Their tongues mingled fervently but Xelloss didn't even try to fight for dominance.

The chimera broke the kiss and pulled back a few inches to look in the priest's eyes that mirrored the lust in his own, "Tell me Xelloss. That strange sensation you feel after Lina and I come – do you enjoy it?"

The demon moaned just thinking about it. "Immensely so."

"Describe it."

Xelloss shivered slightly at the memories he felt stirring up his already overly excited body, "I suppose it does no harm in telling you that." His eyelashes fluttered as he remembered the odd sensation and thought of a way to describe it to the humans.

"The emotions you both pour out when you orgasm tastes like the finest of wines or cognacs to me," he said with eyes closed in blissful reminiscence, "and the curious sensations I experience afterward are what I imagine being at the most pleasant level of drunkenness must feel like." His eyes fluttered open to look up at Zelgadis, "And I don't mind telling you it also makes me incredibly aroused, as though the whole experience has some kind of aphrodisiac effect on me."

The chimera grinned forebodingly and pulled away from the demon, "Well that's good to hear. In that case, I'm sure you'll find this next part as enjoyable as the last." He moved back the short distance to join Lina where she sat on Xelloss' spread out cloak, "You'll have to tell us afterward which you like best."

Xelloss was only slightly disappointed that it seemed like they were already done inflicting pain on him. They were probably still apprehensive about causing him intense amounts of it. He couldn't sense it if they were though, the only emotions he could detect from them at the moment were all related to sexual need.

He figured it was just as well. If they had ended up passing that line where he ceased to feel pleasure and only pain, they may have felt guilty enough that they would have stopped completely. If they didn't, then it would have taken Xelloss a few minutes to recover from the agony. During which time their pleasure-driven momentum would have been lost.

Zelgadis kissed Lina passionately and began unfastening her clothing all so painfully close to Xelloss that he could reach out and touch them if his hands weren't bound.

"Ah, so you're going to pleasurably torture me in another way now." The demon's eyes glimmered, "It seems you've planned out the evening's events very thoroughly."

Lina broke the kiss with Zelgadis to grin at the priest with a heated blush while the chimera freed her of her top. "Are you complaining?"

Xelloss smiled brightly, "Not at all."

She moaned as Zelgadis licked and sucked on one of her nipples and she eventually smirked at the demon again, "Good."

The next several minutes were spent with the sorceress and the shaman ridding each other of their clothing while their hands and lips explored each other's bodies. The only show that they even remembered Xelloss was watching them was when one of them would look up into the demon's eyes lustily.

The chimera was eventually rid of every bit of clothing, while Lina now wore nothing but Zelgadis' earrings and Xelloss' necklace. Which was even more appealing to her lovers than if she wore absolutely nothing at all.

Xelloss watched as Zelgadis shifted their position until Lina was facing the demon. The chimera sat behind her, reaching his hands around her and gently guiding her legs apart until she was completely exposed before the priest's roaming eyes.

The sorceress was completely red faced by having her body put on display for Xelloss, but she didn't try to cover herself and she eagerly responded as one of Zelgadis' hands slipped down to touch her between her legs while the other kneaded her breast.

Xelloss bit his lip and watched fastidiously as the shaman pleasured Lina with his hands. He almost moaned as her wetness increased to moisten his cloak. His powers and strength were sealed, but his cloak was still part of his physical body and although he didn't have any control over the material for the moment, he could still feel everything that was in contact with it as much as if it was his skin.

Lina began to pant and moan as Zelgadis' fingers slipped in and out of her at a quickening pace. When the chimera lifted one of her thighs up for a better angle to penetrate her and expose her to Xelloss, she tilted her head back and screamed as her hands scrambled to find purchase in the demon's cloak under her and the surrounding grass.

The priest's whimpering moan went unheard through Lina's vocal climax as her fluids covered more of the spot on Xelloss' cloak underneath her for the demon to feel.

He sorely needed attention for his own arousal and was starting to wish he wasn't bound so he could at least touch himself; but that was part of this activity of course. Being neglected like this meant more satisfaction when they decided to finally see to his needs.

Lina collapsed back against Zelgadis panting. He kissed her forehead and trailed his wet hand across her torso seductively for Xelloss to see while he waited for the girl to recover.

She eventually found her breath enough to turn around and kiss Zelgadis hungrily, telling him without words that she was greedy for another orgasm.

The chimera kissed her back just as needful but remembered about Xelloss just enough to shift them so that the demon could see them in profile as Lina sat on her knees, straddling his lap.

They broke their kiss to gasp and moan when Zelgadis' shaft brushed against her wet opening.

Zelgadis grinned wickedly as he reached down between their bodies to take his cock in hand and guide it to rub the head teasingly against her. They both moaned at the minimal contact and Zelgadis was broken out of his haze by Xelloss saying his name in a warning voice.

The shaman looked over to see the priest giving him the best warning glare he could manage with lust clouding his eyes.

Of course, the chimera hadn't forgotten about the demon's warning about claiming Lina's virginity. It had been just that morning when he'd heard it. But the temptation was so irresistible.

Zelgadis seriously considered his options as he continued to tease himself and the girl.

He could be the first with Lina and forever have something that Xelloss wanted but could no longer take from him and suffer the consequences of the Mazoku's displeasure. Or, he could wait and let the demon get what he wanted, effectively giving the chimera something to perpetually hang over Xelloss' head; that it was only because Zelgadis had _allowed_ the priest to claim Lina first that Xelloss would be able to do so.

The shaman briefly considered asking Lina what she wanted, but it was painfully clear to him by the look on her face and the way she moaned as he teased her opening that she probably wasn't going to care who was with her first as long as it happened sometime soon.

Zelgadis' sensitive ears could hear the low, barely noticeable sound of Xelloss _growling_ at him when Lina rocked her hips for more contact, still just a bit too shy to cross that final line on her own but trying to entice the chimera to do so instead.

He pulled himself a little away from her opening to rub the tip of his hard shaft against her clit while he tried to make his decision as quickly as he could.

Both choices were equally appealing, but in the end, Zelgadis lifted Lina away from him in order to lay her down on her back on Xelloss' spread out cloak.

He would later claim that he wanted to have something that Xelloss would actually have to _thank_ him for in addition to wanting Lina's first experience with sex to be done properly and in a bed. Though he seriously doubted she really cared about location right now. Lina was so caught up in the heat of the moment that she probably would have let either of them take her on the marble floor of the throne room of Seyruun if they had been there right then.

The sorceress whined in frustration as she was moved away from Zelgadis' arousal and Xelloss' glare disappeared to be replaced once more by a pleased voyeuristic look with eyes that were starting to show the effects Lina's ecstasy had on him. He continued to watch as the chimera spread the girl's legs and started kissing down the length of one of them, Lina's moan of anticipation returning.

Zelgadis was able to take his thoughts off of how much he wanted to change his mind and just go ahead and make love to Lina by focusing on what he was about to do and how much he had been wanting to taste the girl since he'd first licked Xelloss' wet fingers the night before.

The chimera kissed his way down between her legs, careful not to let his wire hair hurt her. He licked around her area, lapping up all the delicious wetness that still coated her skin before kissing her lower lips tenderly and plunging his tongue into the source of all her exquisite fluids.

Lina arched her back and moaned hoarsely as Zelgadis pleasured her with his mouth and tongue, remembering Xelloss' presence just enough to look up at him with dazed and unfocused eyes. She did her absolute best to keep eye contact with him as she came once more, but she only made it half way through it before her eyes rolled back in her head and her back arched at an even more harsh angle and her panting moan turned into another pleasure-racked scream.

When she settled again, Zelgadis pulled back from her to sit on his knees and licked his lips.

Lina looked absolutely gorgeous laying there sprawled out on Xelloss' cloak, completely spent and glowing with post-climactic bliss, panting heavily and coated with sweat that glimmered in the light of the small campfire with her own fluids still trailing slowly from between her legs. The only way she could possibly look any better was if there was evidence of his own sated lust to be found on her.

Zelgadis looked between the exhausted girl and the still bound and painfully aroused demon. He let the hand that was covered in Lina's wetness slowly move down his body to stroke his erection for his own enjoyment as well as the two voyeurs as he thought about what to do next.

When he saw Xelloss lick his bruised lips hungrily as he watched the chimera pump himself slowly, Zelgadis' mind was already made up.

The shaman stood in front of the demon, his hard shaft just barely out of Xelloss' reach as he continued to stroke himself slowly. He asked the priest through half-lidded eyes and a lusty smile, "Do you want to taste me Xelloss?"

The demon smiled maniacally, Lina's two orgasms already affecting him, but somehow he still managed to come up with a clever retort, "Oh my, Zelgadis, have I turned you on to wanting your cock sucked by those who are helplessly bound?"

The few dirty words and the suggestive and needful way he made the statement negated the irritation and embarrassment Zelgadis would have felt if the demon had said his quip without them. As it was, the chimera just grinned perversely as he looked down at the priest and said, "Maybe."

Xelloss smirked, his dilated eyes twinkling with delight, "Well then, I suppose I could indulge you in your new kink."

With a large grin, Zelgadis only shook his head and continued to stroke himself so painfully close to the demon's mouth, "You can't play it off like that Xelloss. I want you to say how much you want me in your mouth."

The demon's eyebrow rose but he couldn't hide the need in his now overly expressive eyes, "That's awfully arrogant of you isn't it?"

Zelgadis only smirked and leaned closer to Xelloss, the demon wetting his lips and unconsciously moving them closer to the chimera's cock as it neared, only for Zelgadis to back away again slightly with a knowing smirk.

"What was that you were saying?" Zelgadis asked mockingly.

If Xelloss wasn't being affected by the strange drunkenness he felt, he would have held onto his pride and his stubbornness for being obnoxiously irritating much longer. But, with his mind only halfway present and his own incredibly overpowering arousal bearing down on him, Xelloss quickly gave in.

He licked his lips again and looked up at Zelgadis with seductive need, "I want to taste you Zelgadis, I want you to fuck my mouth and I want you to scream my name when I suck you dry."

If Zelgadis had been planning on a return comment to whatever he thought Xelloss was going to say, it all went up in smoke faster than Lina could reduce a town to cinders.

Without bothering to say anything, or even think anymore for that matter, Zelgadis finally closed the distance to Xelloss' mouth. He gasped and moaned loudly as the demon quickly took his entire length easily; of course a being like Xelloss wouldn't even have a gag reflex.

Xelloss could taste Lina's wetness mingled with the youth's own delicious flavor and the priest moaned in contentment and reflexively tugged against his bonds, badly wanting to touch the chimera's stony skin. Zelgadis shivered and gasped as the reverberations in the demon's throat caused a wave of pleasure to shoot up his spine.

Zelgadis panted and sank his hands into the priest's hair as he gave him indescribable gratification with his tongue and throat muscles. The demon was so incredibly skilled and experienced, he didn't even need his hands to make Zelgadis whimper pathetically.

Since Lina was so very new at receiving oral sex, she undoubtedly couldn't fully appreciate Xelloss' skills yet, but Zelgadis could.

The shaman felt a demon fang purposefully graze against him with a slight amount of pain and he took the hint when he saw Xelloss look up at him meaningfully through dark lashes. The fingers that were tangled in Xelloss' hair tightened to pull on the strands painfully as the shaman bucked into the priest's mouth giving the demon what he was silently asking for.

Ordinarily, Zelgadis would never do such selfish things to someone who was satisfying him like this, but he knew Xelloss liked and wanted the rough treatment and anyway, the demon had directly told him that he wanted the chimera to fuck his mouth.

Lina had recovered enough from her euphoria and sat up to better watch them as Zelgadis' grip tightened even more into purple hair and he thrust a few times much more harshly than he had intended to. He gasped and moaned out a long drawn out 'X' sound, still hanging onto the last few shards of his stubbornness.

The demon knew he was trying to hold onto his pride up until the last moment, but with a few more strong sucks and a well placed talented tongue, Zelgadis came hard into the priest's mouth. The chimera's own mouth completely betraying him, "X-X-Xelloss!"

Xelloss drank every last bit of the youth greedily. Not even a drop escaped his bruised lips.

Zelgadis pulled out of his mouth and with shaky legs that could no longer support his heavy stone weight, he dropped to his knees on the ground where he stood and fell forward against the demon's chest, completely out of breath.

Xelloss grinned with completely smug self-satisfaction but Zelgadis couldn't see it, and even if he had, his brain was taking a short vacation at the moment. The chimera didn't even have enough presence of mind to be upset at his show of total weakness or how the demon had quite literally brought him to his knees with only his mouth. All he could comprehend at the moment was that he just had the best orgasm he could ever remember having.

When Zelgadis finally came back to his senses, he found he was _nuzzling_ the demon's chest and he had what felt like a rather large smile on his face. But the part that bothered him most was the fact that he wasn't actually bothered at all.

He looked up at Xelloss, whose arrogant smile completely dissolved when he saw what he could only describe as the most disturbingly cute look he'd ever seen on Zelgadis. He wasn't sure if maybe the chimera had just had a mental meltdown, or maybe Lina's two orgasms and the powerful one Zelgadis just had was causing the demon to see things. The only thing he was sure of was that he'd never seen such an adorably content and pleased look on the usually annoyed and irritated chimera before.

With a brief glace over to see Lina's disbelieving expression, Xelloss was able to come to the conclusion that no, he really wasn't just imagining things.

Zelgadis sighed contently and continued to enjoy the lasting buzz of his climax a few moments more before it faded away, taking his adorably content expression with it.

He suddenly seemed to realize just how strange he was acting and blushed darkly as he pulled away from Xelloss. It was just like the night before when he had realized just how odd he had behaved when he came to his senses after his demon aspect took control of his actions. Only this time, his unusually peaceful and blissful post-climactic behavior was quite the opposite from his animalistic pleasure-driven conduct of before.

Zelgadis wondered once again if he was losing his mind, and came to the same conclusion as always; it would all be Xelloss' fault if he was driven to insanity.

Xelloss suddenly started giggling madly when the chimera's blissful expression dramatically changed to confusion and irritation. "What's wrong Zelgadis-kun? Did you enjoy that more than you expected?"

The chimera blushed and scowled but his expression quickly turned wickedly dark once again as he saw the open wound on the demon's stomach that was unable to heal while he was bound by the enchanted cuffs. The expression was the only warning Xelloss got before Zelgadis' hand reached up to touch and irritate the wound, giving the demon more masochistic enjoyment.

Xelloss moaned and whimpered, completely uncaring and lacking in his usual composure due to the effects Lina and Zelgadis had on him. His shameless noises abruptly stopped and just as quickly were replaced with a snarl and a very demon-fanged glower directed at Zelgadis, "I swear if you don't finish me off soon I will put the worst Mazoku curse on you that I can think of once I'm free."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Xelloss blinked in wide eyed confusion, as if he couldn't believe he'd said such a thing and Lina and Zelgadis were just as shocked.

The priest's look quickly returned to something resembling normal for someone who was starved for sexual fulfillment but he didn't look like he was about to apologize or take back his words either.

Zelgadis' expression morphed into something that was deserving of his Brau demon third and reached two of his fingers into Xelloss' wound and twisted them, making the priest scream out in unbelievable pain and pleasure.

The chimera continued to torture his captive and taunted him with a dark smirk, "I think I want to hear the all mighty Priest General of the Demon Lord Beastmaster _beg_ for me to pleasure him rather than threaten me for it."

The dark priest screamed again when Zelgadis harshly added another stone finger to the unholy black abyss of the wound on his stomach.

It might just have been the drunkenness he was feeling, but Xelloss couldn't recall ever needing his own sexual release this much and his arousal hadn't even been _touched_ yet. He didn't think he'd let himself go so long without satisfying his physical desires again anytime soon. Hopefully, Lina and Zelgadis would continue to be helpful with that issue.

Xelloss could feel the last little bits of his coherence leaving him and he was barely aware that his face kept changing between being slack with desire and twisted with demonic anger. The priest didn't even realize that it was his own voice that panted the word 'Please'.

Zelgadis smirked and leaned in to bite Xelloss' lip and lick it as the hand that was now covered in black blood moved to the demon's hardness and gripped it.

Xelloss moaned as the chimera's slick hand moved painfully slow and tried to rock his hips as much as he could for more friction. Zelgadis' smirk grew at the arrogant priest's completely out of character behavior. He definitely liked the submissive and needful version of Xelloss, the brief flashes of demonic anger that kept reoccurring made it even better in the chimera's opinion.

He gripped his stony hand tighter and began moving it faster, "You need to do better than just saying please. Beg me for it Xelloss." He moved his free hand around to rake painfully down the demon's whip welt back and Xelloss' needful noises grew louder, "Tell me just how much you wish I would fuck you. How much you need me to give you your release."

All at once, the cuffs that bound Xelloss became dormant again and he didn't even stop to consider that 'release' must be the 'Word' to… well, release him from his enchanted bonds. The only thing his sex starved, Mazoku mind could think of was that he was suddenly free and there was a perfectly good body to fulfill his needs right in front of him and already touching him.

Only a second had ticked by since Zelgadis had accidentally spoken the 'Word of Power' to when he found himself suddenly, and roughly forced onto his back. Chaotic lavender eyes stared down at him hungrily while Xelloss painfully dug his claws into his stony hide as he moved him into position with all haste and the chimera could only stare up at the demon in wide eyed shock as it barely registered what had happened and what was only seconds from happening.

Thankfully, Lina's reflexes were faster than Zelgadis'. "Holy shi- _Bind_!"

Xelloss snarled as his hands were bound behind his back again and fought against them much harder than he did before and with much more rage. Rationality had completely left the ancient demon and the need to forcibly take what he wanted had replaced it.

It was a good thing Lina had reacted so fast, because destruction and violence was always naturally a part of what a Mazoku wanted. A mindless Xelloss was not as good as it sounded.

Lina sighed in relief when Xelloss' hands were once again restrained and they had avoided Zelgadis being raped. It wouldn't even really be Xelloss' fault either - he clearly wasn't in control of himself.

She scowled at the chimera who sat back up again with still panicked, wide eyes, "I'm gonna smack you upside the head with Galveira later for being so stupid, but right now we need to take care of Xelloss. I don't think it's a good idea to tease him anymore tonight."

Zelgadis nodded numbly but was able to get his mind back on the task at hand quickly enough. Without either of them saying 'restrain', Xelloss' ankles were left unbound now, allowing Zelgadis to pull the struggling priest into his lap so he would straddle the shaman's legs. He wrapped his arms around him tightly and kissed him to try and calm the demon down.

Xelloss bit him mindlessly as he continued to struggle but eventually he did calm enough to return the kiss with fervor and stopped fighting to buck his hips instead so that his arousal would rub against the chimera's stony stomach.

Lina moved to sit behind Xelloss' whip marked back as Zelgadis stroked his need. They gave him everything they thought he wanted; kisses and touches, both tender and painful and any dark emotion they could scrounge up to offer him through their lust.

Hands and lips were everywhere on the priest; in his hair, his neck, on his wounds, his hips, but most importantly Zelgadis' slick hand was pumping him fast and hard. Xelloss thrust into the chimera's stone hand as much as he could and practically howled as he came all over the shaman's chest and stomach.

A lasting moan that eventually became a sigh came from the priest's throat as he let himself fall to rest against Zelgadis.

When his awareness finally returned to him an indeterminable amount of time later, he realized Lina and Zelgadis' arms were wrapped around him, embracing him as he relaxed between their bodies, and one of them was running their fingers through his tangled hair affectionately.

Xelloss searched through his most recent memories and realized just how beastly he had behaved. He'd never acted in such a way before and suddenly felt _ashamed_ for the first time in his life for something other than failing his Lord Beastmaster.

He wasn't sure why, but the idea of taking Zelgadis against his will made Xelloss feel just as sick as he used to pretend positive emotions made him feel.

Raping a human shouldn't make him experience such distress. Especially not from just the thought of it. There were so many deliciously dark emotions to be savored from such an act. Many of his kind forced themselves onto humans on a regular basis, and Xelloss himself had gone through such a phase a few hundred years ago.

So then why did the thought of raping Lina or Zelgadis make him feel so disturbed?

He tried his best not to think about it, but he bit his lip and felt the crushing need to apologize even if he wasn't going to examine why he felt like he should.

Xelloss didn't bother to move from his resting place against the chimera, "I… apologize for my lack of control Zelgadis. It was not my intention to… behave such a way."

He spoke softly but the humans could clearly hear him and he felt their arms tighten around him. The fingers in his hair that he finally recognized as belonging to the shaman moved some loose strands to tuck behind his ear.

"Don't worry about it. You weren't in your right mind any more than I was last night."

Xelloss heard the smirk in Lina's voice coming from behind him. "The question is; do you feel better now?"

The priest allowed a very broad, maniacal and completely satisfied smile to grace his features. As far as he was concerned, 'better' was a drastic understatement.

He couldn't remember _ever_ making so much noise during intimate activities before. Normally, his sounds were limited to moans, groans, gasps, and the occasional whimper. He'd never felt the urge to vocalize his climax so loudly before, but then again, he'd never felt that good from physical stimulus before either.

He figured that it was merely a combination of things, the most of which was the strange way Lina and Zelgadis' orgasmic emotions affected him.

With those thoughts in mind, he was almost surprised to realize that the strange drunkenness had disappeared since his own release and blissful contentment had taken it place. It wasn't a normal kind of content though. He felt so incredibly mellow; like he was soaking in a hot spring that was just the right temperature. His physical body was so relaxed, he didn't think he'd be able to move for a while and he realized his worrying thoughts from earlier were steadily disappearing as he slowly drifted off into some sort of emotional high.

Xelloss smiled dreamily and tilted his head, leaving it still cushioned against Zelgadis to look at Lina through one _glowing_, dilated eye that was a much more lilac in color than the usual amethyst.

"You have no idea just how much 'better' I feel."

* * *

><p>AN<p>

*fangirlish squealing* I hope you liked all the NC-17 stuff! I sure did!

Oh Zelgadis… *facepalm* got a little too lost in the moment didn't you? Hope you learned your lesson :P

Sorry if you think the dirty talk makes them seem out of character or if you don't like it or whatever. I'm going to keep it to a minimum, just for really heated moments whenever one of them is in the mood for dirty talk :3

If you want to throw rocks at my head for saying Xelloss was into raping humans a few hundred years ago, please stop to think about it for a moment. He's a member of the 'race of evil'- he's a demon/monster who feeds on the negative emotions of humans, and he's been around for at _least_ a thousand years. I think its well within reason to say he wasn't always the way he is now and he was likely way more demonic back when he was blowing dragons out of the sky like they were specks of dust.

And although he's not as bad as he used to be, there's still likely to be some pretty damn scary things he still does that Lina and Zel and the others don't know about. He's probably not always mercifully quick when Zelas sends him to kill someone – torture is a demonic vice just as much as claiming innocence is.

I don't mind letting it slip that sex will be sooooooon :3 Xelloss isn't going to let them go 'unpunished' for tying him up for very long.

Please review! Please tell me if you like the detailed fanservice or you think I need to summarize more so I can move the story along faster.


	14. Glow

AN

Holy crap! It's been a little more than three years since I updated! Sorry to leave you guys hanging for so long! I know that people still read what I have up here every once in a while and I know there's a couple of people who have been waiting patiently for the continuation of this story. Let me just say that I'm sorry it's taken me this long to get chapter 14 up! It's been a busy few years for me.

I lost the job I had when I was originally writing this story, I caught up with my old college sweetheart, came out to visit him back in California (we had both gone to the Art Institute in San Diego, which is where we met back in 2005), I ended up moving out there with him, we got married, he got laid off from his job, we had to move in with his family, we lived there for like a year, we both went back to college (but this time each doing online classes with different schools), we moved back here to my hometown so we could move in with my dad while we found work, I got a new job that's more up my alley, and my husband had to go back to California to help take care of his parents when his mom had a health episode and has been out there since then. We're trying to get him to come back out here as soon as possible, but that's probably not going to happen for a few months. A lot of other big events has happened to me since I last updated this story, but those are the highlights that I'm willing to talk about. Oh! And I'm getting braces put on next month -_- i'm 28 and I'll have braces... not happy about that, but after seeing a dentist, orthodontist and a specialist, it's the next step in trying to fix my TMJ. Which is really bad and painful and hurts me from the jaw itself, all the way down to my shoulders. Some days are much worse than others too.

_Anyway_, enough of what's happened to me. I'm sure you're much more interested in finding out what's happening in the story! I've held onto my notes for this story all this time and have remembered most of the ideas that I hadn't written down (I hope I'm remembering them all anyway lol). So the story will continue as I'd originally planned.

**Also!** I revised chapters 1-13! No story changes were made, so you don't need to reread it or anything, but I did make a lot of corrections and added a bit more details here and there.

But anyway, I present the long overdue Chapter 14!

* * *

><p>"Xelloss, your eyes are glowing."<p>

The demon priest blinked in surprise at Lina's statement and sat up in Zelgadis' lap. "They are? That's odd."

"They really are." The chimera confirmed with surprise.

The Mazoku wasn't sure what to make of that. Normally, his eyes only glowed when in the heat of battle or when he was psyching himself up before a fight. Meaning, his eyes normally only glowed when he was stepping up his powers.

Now that he thought about it, he could feel a slight tingling of power, but with his abilities bound by the magical cuffs, he couldn't be certain.

"I can't say I know why they're glowing, but I'm sure it will fade soon." He shifted his arms that were still bound behind his back uncomfortably. "In the meantime, now that our fun for this evening is over, would you mind releasing me? As much as I truly enjoyed tonight's activities, I don't care to be left completely vulnerable for too long."

After his close call with the demon, Zelgadis wasn't too quick to free him again. "Are you sure you're back to yourself again?"

Xelloss smiled back at him for a moment before giving him a gentle kiss on the lips, "I'm absolutely certain that I'm completely in control of myself again."

The unexpected tenderness of the kiss made Zelgadis face heat slightly but seemed to prove to him that the priest had truly shaken off whatever had possessed him earlier. "Alright, but if you lose control of yourself like that again, we'll bound you in those cuffs and leave you to rot in a basement somewhere."

His idle threat went unheeded of course. "You both know you wouldn't be able to go a single day anymore without seeing my handsome face," Xelloss smirked at the chimera and the redhead smugly.

"You mean we couldn't go a single day without clocking that handsome face." Lina interjected with a smirk of her own. It was just like them to shake off the incident with an out of control Xelloss and go right back to their usual banter of haughty off-handed comments and snarky retorts.

Xelloss made a mock-offended face, "I'm in such an abusive relationship!"

"From how you acted tonight, I'm pretty sure you would make sure any sexual relationship you had would be abusive to some level." Zelgadis quipped.

"Well you would be right about that." Xelloss winked mischievously at him.

Zelgadis almost rolled his eyes at the demon's playfulness, but it was definitely preferred to his earlier behavior at least. Saying the 'Word of power' cautiously, the chimera readied himself to bind the priest again if necessary, "_Release_."

The cuffs binding Xelloss immediately became dormant, leaving his arms to fall to his sides. Lina and Zelgadis waited with bated breath for a few moments, but it was apparent that Xelloss truly was back to himself again.

As soon as the magical restrains were released, he could definitely feel the extra buzz of power that was surely causing his eyes to glow. In comparison to his normal wealth of power, it wasn't a whole lot, just enough to tingle the ends of his fingertips and make him feel a little excitement that could be easily compared to a small adrenaline rush in humans. He didn't know why this was brought about and because it wasn't a huge difference, he decided to ignore it for now and look into it later. No doubt it was another symptom of his odd condition lately.

With his arms unbound again, he moved one of his wrists close up to his face to inspect a bracelet. "These are some impressive magical items," he praised them with genuine respect. "You made these in one afternoon?"

Lina was pretty quick to praise herself as well, "Yup! They're my own design too. Zel helped me make them, but they're so powerful because they're made from a dragon fang and the engravings contain some blood from both of us."

Xelloss' face scrunched up in disgust when he heard there was a dragon involved, but he quickly turned interested at the second part of what went into the items. "You used blood magic on these?"

The genius sorceress sighed in disdain, "Yeah, Zel and I both hate to use it, but it was the only way we could make the cuffs so they'd be powerful enough to hold you and also make it so only he and I could activate them. Clearly they need a little tweaking - namely changing the 'Words of Power' a little bit." She rolled her eyes in Zelgadis' direction and elbowed him slightly in the arm, "But as far as their power, I think they turned out perfect."

The chimera's eyebrow twitched a little bit, "I told you we should have picked something else, but you insisted the words should be something quick and easy."

Lina huffed and crossed her arms, "Ok, so we both messed up. We can fix it though."

Xelloss stood up from his position still on Zelgadis' lap and stretched, completely uncaring that most of his clothing was still missing. "These cuffs appear like they have no seams, I'm interested to know how you take them off."

Seeing the priest stand up and being mostly exposed, Lina and Zelgadis were reminded of their own nudity and both blushed slightly while reaching over to pick up whatever article of their clothing had been closest to themselves - the chimera first having to clean up the evidence of Xelloss' pleasure that was left on his stomach with the end of his pant leg. He sincerely hoped no one outside the three of them would notice the mess before he had a chance to wash his clothing.

Lina smirked at the demon cockily before pulling her undershirt over her head, "Oh no. We're not going to take those off anytime soon."

Zelgadis chuckled at Xelloss' slightly surprised look as he stood up to put on his pants. "As much fun as you had tonight, we probably wouldn't get you to put them back on again."

Well, that was probably a correct assumption. As much as he enjoyed the evening, Xelloss' Mazoku instincts wouldn't let him just offer himself up to be completely helpless for any reason.

"Don't worry about it." Lina shook her pants to rid them of dirt before putting them on. "When they're not active, the power they use is only enough to keep them stuck on you. You should still be able to use all of your powers just fine. And the low level of magic they give off when dormant is about as strong as a cheap talisman, so they shouldn't really be noticeable at all aside from looking like jewelry." She grinned somewhat wickedly at him, "But, with them, Zel and I can make sure we have at least _some_ dominance in this little relationship of ours."

Xelloss mused aloud, "I suppose I can't fault you for taking dominance over me however you can get it. Though I hope you know, I'll have to get you both back for this." His smile turned dark with promise.

Lina and Zelgadis both chilled at his declaration, but the redhead always had to stand on top, "We expected as much Xelloss." She grinned victoriously at him, "But for this round, the point belongs to us."

Slipping back into his natural demeanor of being obnoxious, Xelloss bowed in mock-servitude, "Well then, this game is yours and I suppose I'm at your will until you decide to remove these cuffs. Is there anything you would have me do?" He asked, giving them both his best cheesy smile.

Lina snorted as she finished with the clasps on her top, "For starters, you can stop being a smart-ass and fix your clothes so we can head back into the city. I don't feel like camping out here when there's a perfectly comfortable bed that I can sleep in tonight."

"An easy task," the demon chuckled slightly before he and all of his clothing that was spread out around the campsite disappeared in a blur of black and reappeared, all his garments on him again and in one piece as they should be. His hair was back in perfectly groomed condition with half of it being back in a ponytail and the front pieces hanging down to frame his face again. He was also completely cleaned and, unbeknownst to them, the minor wounds they had inflicted on him were completely gone.

The redhead finished putting on the last bits of her outfit, "I wish I could do that. It would definitely come in handy whenever we come under attack in the middle of the night."

Zelgadis nodded his head in agreement as he finished putting his belts back on, mumbling under his breath, "Or when you decide to walk into the nearest bandit camp and cause explosions in the middle of the night._" _The fiery sorceress clearly heard the comment, but decided to ignore it for once. She was still in too good of a mood to let it bother her.

With everyone fully dressed again, Lina put out the fire while Zelgadis picked up the crate that contained the scraps of the dragon fang – one never knew when even small bits of a dragon fang could come in handy. Before they even had a chance to start heading back to town, Xelloss got their attention, "I'll teleport us back to the palace. I think I would like us to take advantage of one of the large bathtubs you both have in your rooms." The demon winked at them and smirked suggestively.

"Seriously?" Lina asked, both she and Zelgadis were surprised. "What we just did wasn't enough for you for now?"

Xelloss chuckled a little, "I do desire more of you both tonight." He ran his finger along Lina's chin seductively, "But honestly, I was only thinking about bathing. I don't need it, but I'm sure you both want to get cleaned and my thought was that with those large tubs in the palace, we might enjoy a relaxing time together." He moved in closer to her, putting his hand on her waist and tilting her chin up for her to look him in his still glowing eyes, "However, I certainly wouldn't object if something more than that happened."

Zelgadis had the overwhelming feeling that he and Lina wouldn't be getting much rest that night – and probably not much sleep for every night in the foreseeable future either.

The redhead looked away in a bit of defiance, she wanted to keep her sense of control over the situation for as long as she possibly could. Magical shackles or not, Xelloss was clearly still in command, but Lina still chose to pretend that wasn't so. "Yes, well, let's get back to the palace and we can decide what to do from there."

As soon as the three of them fully materialized in Lina's darkened room, Xelloss knocked the chimera and sorceress onto the floor. Belongings were dropped, furniture was knocked into and the minds of the two humans raced in panic at what was going on and much more so as they realized someone in the room was making pain-filled noises - and it didn't belong to any of them.

Lina and Zelgadis both hastily cast Lighting spells and were shocked to see Xelloss pinning a man dressed all in black high up against the wall, held there only by his throat.

The look on Xelloss' face was full of monstrous fury and the hand wrapped around the man's neck was only a fraction less than what would crush his windpipe. "You're not the same assassin who tried to poison my companions the other night are you?"

The assassin tried as much as he could to shake his head 'no' and grasped futilely at Xelloss' hand around his neck to get him to slacken his grip while kicking his legs, trying to find footing to stand on.

Now that the sorceress and the chimera were able to understand the situation, they were able to see that there were several throwing knives that had fallen on the ground beneath the man. Looking back behind her, Lina's blood drained from her face to see that there were three of the same kind of knives embedded in the wall beside her. She was certain that they all would have hit her in the chest if Xelloss hadn't pushed her out of the way.

Zelgadis was quick to pick himself up off the ground, drawing his sword and prepared himself for anymore enemies that may jump out of the shadows. "There's more than one assassin after us?"

Though Xelloss' eyes continued to glow from earlier, they now took on a much different sight as he glared icily at the killer with barely controlled demonic rage. He lowered the man to the ground and relaxed his grip on the his throat just enough for him to be able to talk, "Answer the question. And be sure you put some thought into your words - if I don't like what you have to say, they'll be your last."

The man was clearly well-trained in the art of his weapons, but for all of his great marksmanship, it was quite apparent that he'd never dealt with a Mazoku before. The fear that he was giving off just from looking into Xelloss' fanged snarl and glowing eyes was proof of that. Though, the death grip on his neck probably wasn't helping the man to remember any sort of training on how to escape either.

The killer continued to grasp at Xelloss' hand on his throat in vain but answered in a panic, hoping that he'd be released. "A bounty was just posted at the Assassin's Guild the other day! Half the guild is after those two," he gestured frantically towards Lina and Zelgadis. "The bounty to bring their heads in is a fortune!"

He gasped for air when the hand around his neck tightened again briefly, coughing when the grip slackened once more. "Where is the Assassin's Guild you saw their bounties at?"

The low-life had no qualms about ratting out his brethren if it would save his own skin, "Down by the river! The bounty board is in the back room of the Firebreather's Tavern."

"Who posted the bounty?" Lina demanded.

"I don't know! The notice just said to bring in proof of the kill back to any Guild and the Master for that branch would tell you where to get the reward."

Zelgadis slammed his left fist onto a nearby end table, shattering it to pieces, "Shit! So our faces are plastered all over every Assassin's Guild?"

"Well that's just great!" Lina threw her hands up in the air in exasperation, "Just what we needed."

"I've told you everything I know!" He pleaded with them, still trying desperately to free himself of Xelloss' steel grip, "It was just business. I swear if you let me go I'll never bother you again! In fact, I'll become a farmer or a priest!"

The last thing the man ever saw was Xelloss' glowing, rage-filled eyes, "You forfeited your life the moment you tried to take away what's mine." In one quick flex of his hand the demon crushed the failed killer's windpipe and broke his neck. He threw the weak being to the floor in disgust but the man was dead before he ever hit the ground.

Lina and Zelgadis clearly heard the priest referring to them as 'his', but both of them quickly decided on their own that now was not the time to bring it up, not because of the assassination attempt, or even because there was a dead man bleeding from his crushed neck on the floor. No, neither of them wanted to bring it up because Xelloss was quite clearly on the warpath. The simple fact that he was actually showing genuine anger was enough to worry them – even in the midst of life and death battle, they had never seen Xelloss truly mad before.

Whatever may have caused Xelloss' severe level of anger, Lina knew that at least it was safely directed at villains. She cracked her knuckles and geared herself up to fight for some vengeance of her own. "What do you say we go down to the Firebreather's Tavern and have a word or two with the Master there?"

"Whatever we do, we need to tell the others about this attack first," Zelgadis reasoned. "There may be others out for the bounty that have managed to sneak into the palace. You and I may be their targets but that doesn't mean the others aren't in danger. Just like with the poison."

"You're right! We better find everyone and let them know." Lina's anger was temporarily on hold as she quickly became worried for her friends. She started to head to the door of her room but Xelloss stopped her with a hand on her shoulder.

The priest's curious anger seemed to have cooled but he was still acting with all seriousness. "I can't say I care too much about the welfare of the others, but if you want to talk them, I insist you let me hurry this along."

Without even waiting for either of them to answer, he teleported them to where he had an overwhelming hunch that most, if not all, of their companions would still be.

In shocked silence, Lina and Zelgadis took in the sight of the destroyed palace grounds, which was now in an even worse state than Xelloss had previously seen it.

Despite the carnage of the surrounding trees and the constant clatter of swords in the distance, most of their companions had fallen asleep on bedrolls on the ground surrounding a campfire not too far from the palace steps.

"What the-!? You gotta be kidding me!" Lina exclaimed over the realization that Gourry and Zangalus were _still_ fighting. They had to have started their fight at _least_ eleven hours ago. "What the hell is wrong with those two?"

Most of those asleep by the campfire woke up to the sound of Lina shouting, but Amelia was actually still awake, having rested from her earlier nap. Turning to see the trio, she answered the sorceress' rhetorical question, "Oh, they held a truce once a couple of hours ago so they could eat and rest for a bit," as if it made their dualing marathon any less grueling than it actually was.

Zelgadis was just about to inform the rousing spectators of what had happened with the assassin when Xelloss' suddenly vanished from sight, only to reappear in the distance in the midst of the continuing sword fight.

The Mazoku didn't even bother wasting time to try and get the dualists' attention, he already knew from the earlier discussion with Pakota that while they were competing with each other, Gourry and Zangalus couldn't be touched by the world around them. Instead, Xelloss appeared in front of Gourry in the blink of an eye and elbowed him in the stomach, while simultaneously sending a small, controlled blast of energy at Zangalus, which threw him back into one of the very few trees that were still left standing. Both humans were knocked unconscious at the moment of impact.

Using Raywing, the other party members were quick to travel the short distance and arrive at the scene. "Xelloss-san! What did you do that for?! Have you become our enemy again?" Amelia was already tensing herself for battle when she landed.

For the first time in at least several decades, the demon actually felt like he was running out patience. "While the lot of you have been fooling around outside all day, an assassin snuck into the palace and would have probably killed Lina if I hadn't been there." He glared, deathly serious at the princess, "Considering the fact that I crushed his neck beyond recognition without any effort, I think our two swordsman will be happy to find that I only cracked a few of their ribs to get their attention."

Amelia was completely cowed down by the Mazoku's glowing-eyed glare at her. She was relieved when Pakota stood between her and Xelloss. "An assassin got into the palace?!"

"Yes, but as I said, he's already a corpse."

Zelgadis decided to interject before the tension snapped and more of his comrades ended up unconscious like Gourry and Zangulus, who were already being healed by Sylphiel and a couple of the palace sorcerers who happened to be outside in case anything got too out of control with the earlier dual. The sorcerers who were healing Zangulus weren't having a very easy time of it as Martina was in hysterics and asking every other second if her husband was healed yet.

"We're not sure if there are any more or not so I think the palace needs to be searched," the chimera reasoned with the prince of Taforashia. "We were just about to go to the Assassin's Guild and take care of the source of the problem."

Lina punched one of her fists into her other hand. "Yeah, our dead friend told us there's a bounty for Zel and me down there. So we were going to go and try to 'convince' them to take it down," she grinned wickedly.

"Actually, I can't let you do that," Xelloss caught her off guard. "I'm afraid you would cease to hold value for me if you both died. That being the case, I can't just let you walk into a den of murders who are all after you."

"We've fought worse enemies-"

"You can't just-"

Lina and Zelgadis both started to yell at him, but he didn't even let them finish their opening arguments before he stamped his staff on the ground, the glowing orb releasing power. Before they could stop it from happening, everyone who was previously in the clearing in front of the palace steps was now in a pocket dimension created by Xelloss.

The clearing that they previously stood in was now cloaked in darkness and nothing could be seen beyond thirty or so feet away. The moon that once hung in the sky was no longer there and it was quite clear, to even those in the group who had never encountered a pocket dimension before, that they were no longer in the world they were familiar with.

The redheaded sorceress reached out in anger toward the Mazoku, "Xelloss! What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Her hands grabbed nothing as he disappeared in a flash. However, since they were in space created from his power, he was able to leave a parting message that was heard only within the minds of Lina and Zelgadis, _"I will return after I have put an end to the worthless vermin in this city who are looking to cause either of you harm."_

Lina didn't care so much for his uncharacteristic concern for them. "Xelloss, you _bastard_!" She screamed into the darkness as loud as her lungs would let her. She started throwing Fireballs and Elmekia Flames into the black abyss that enclosed the group to vent her anger. Every single spell that left the light of the clearing seemed to disappear from existence as soon as they could no longer see it. "As if we couldn't take care of a few murdering losers! I'm not a baby!"

Zelgadis let her temper run its course until she started casting an Explosion Array. He grabbed her around her waist and picked her up to stop her from casting. "Lina calm down! You're going to blow us all up! You know as well I do that regular magic won't get us out of here and none of it will hurt Xelloss either."

The hot-headed sorceress fought in his arms for a few moments, during which time she stomped on his foot and elbowed him in the face until she'd worn out her fury. She slumped in his arms, seemingly giving up.

She suddenly perked up again, determination on her face and if she even realized she'd struck him in her fit she didn't show it. "Right! Well I just need to cast a summoning spell like I did against Mazenda and we'll all get out of here."

Deciding to ignore mentioning the inadvertent pummeling she gave him, Zelgadis put her down again and she immediately began casting a summoning spell.

She waited expectantly after her incantation ended, confident that her summon would break through Xelloss' pocket dimension and create a crack for them to escape through.

After several agonizingly long moments it became apparent that her spell wasn't working. She quickly became frustrated again and started summoning everything that she could think of in rapid succession.

Zelgadis sighed in resignation and sat down on the grass. When Lina was out of breath and had finally given up on her summoning she slumped to the ground next to him. "I had a feeling nothing would work to get out of here. Xelloss told us before that his dimensions were foolproof," he reminded her.

"I thought he was just being smug!" She practically growled at him, "He's good at that you know."

He nodded his head in agreement. "I wish we'd realized what was going on in time or we could have activated those cuffs. But at this point, I doubt the 'Words of Power' would work while we're trapped in here."

"Yeah, and even if they did work, then he'd be stuck out there like a sitting duck among a bunch of murderers. Not that I think he'd actually be in any real danger from regular humans, even with his powers sealed, but I'm not really interested in finding out what might happen if we try that. For all we know, if we seal his powers, this dimension will collapse and kill us all."

Zelgadis had to agree, the best thing to do was to just wait.

Now that Gourry and Zangulus were completely healed and conscious again, Amelia came over to talk to Lina and Zelgadis to find out their current situation. "What are we going to do? Why would Xelloss-san trap us here?" She bit her bottom lip and looked like she might cry at what she saw as the Mazoku's potential betrayal.

"Believe it or not, Xelloss trapped us here to protect us," Lina almost snorted in disbelief at her own words.

The princess was surprised by that. "Really?"

Zelgadis nodded, "It would seem so. Lina already tried everything she could to break out of here, but it looks like our only option is to trust Xelloss and wait for him to come back and get us out."

If Amelia was surprised by hearing that Xelloss was protecting them, she was positively shocked to hear Zelgadis say that they had to trust him. She looked to Lina to make sure she wasn't hearing things, but the sorceress just nodded in agreement with him, neither of them seeming to notice Amelia's wide eyes and gaping mouth.

There were certainly stranger things in the world than Zelgadis trusting, and even encouraging trust in Xelloss, but Amelia couldn't think of a single one of them.

* * *

><p>Just like rats when they found a new source of food, human scum had moved into Taforashia and made a nest for themselves in a cluster of rundown buildings by the river.<p>

Xelloss quickly found the dilapidated Firebreather's Tavern, which was made easy to spot by the new, brightly painted red sign hanging outside the door. Walking inside, it was obvious to Xelloss that the tavern's patrons hailed from the bottom rungs of society. Everything from pickpockets and prostitutes to burglars and assassins filled the bar.

"Hey there buddy!" A drunk, burly man who towered over Xelloss, came up to him and used his best intimidation methods. "What's a priest like you doing here? If you've come to convert everyone to be good and follow the teachings of whatever religion you're a follower of, I'm afraid you're wasting your time." He leaned down and took the edge of Xelloss' cloak between his fingers, admiring the material "But you seem like a nice guy – with some nice stuff. If you give up your loot, I'll let you walk out of here without getting hurt."

"You seem to have the wrong idea about me," Xelloss opened his eyes and smiled maliciously at him. It was the only warning the barbarian of a man got before the priest cracked his staff down on the man's head with such force that it was embedded in the floor of the tavern at lightning speed. Not even bothering to check if he'd killed him or not, Xelloss kicked him in the chest, which sent the burly man through the wall of the tavern and into the nearby river, where his body sank into the water. "You shouldn't have touched me with your filthy hands."

After witnessing the display, everyone with enough sense of self-preservation fled from the tavern like cockroaches, using the hole in the wall to escape when the front door became to crowded.

Of course, not all of the people in the building had escaped and several assassins came running from the back room, weapons ready for a fight. Though, they hadn't witnessed what had happened, it was pretty clear to them from the debris and Xelloss' calm composure that he was the cause of the commotion.

"Who are you and what do you want?" One of the sword wielding fighters yelled from the group.

Xelloss' glowing purple eyes surveyed the group of killers, who all had weapons pointed at him. "Even though none of you seem to hail from Taforashia, one would think that you would have at least heard from the locals about me."

A sword clattered to the ground and its owner looked at the priest with new found terror, "Y-you're Xelloss of the Mazoku aren't you?"

Xelloss smile was very fitting of his demon race, "You would be correct."

The man who recognized him, along with several others, immediately began to flee the tavern, but were stopped in their tracks as a barrier of black flame blocked their path and trapped them in the building with the demon.

"I'm terribly sorry but I can't allow you to leave," Xelloss said in a tone of voice that showed he wasn't sorry at all. "However, I need to have a little chat with you all and the Master of this guild."

If the Master was going to pretend he wasn't the Master, he didn't even have a chance to as all the assassins turned their heads to look directly at him, giving him away to Xelloss. "Bunch of cowards! All of you!" the scar-ridden man shouted at the group.

The Master quickly showed that he wasn't any more courageous than the rest of his guild as he started to tremble when Xelloss walked up to him, black flames licking at his feet, with a disturbingly pleasant smile on his face.

"I would like to ask you who posted the bounties for Lina Inverse and Zelgadis Greywords." The pleasant smile wiped off his face as his hand snatched out and grabbed the front of the Master's clothes in order to pull the man's face close to his, "And if you don't tell me everything you know, you won't live to regret it."

Surely, the Master had killed many people, and been in countless battles in his life, but when inches away from an enraged high-level demon, the man acted no better than any other weak and powerless human. He started sputtering and volunteering any sort of information he could, "The bounty was posted out of the city of Porthaven! The person never gave a real name! Only the alias "Z". Anyone who brings in the proof of the kill of either of those bounties was supposed to go to the Assassin's Guild in Porthaven. I was never even told a description of the person who posted the bounty. That's all I know! I swear!"

Xelloss knew he wasn't lying but had hoped that he would have gotten a name to work with. However, having a destination was helpful at least. He supposed that whoever posted this bounty was at least a little smarter than the average person who could want revenge on Lina and Zelgadis – surely there were hundreds, if not thousands, of people out there in the world who would want revenge on Lina alone. Xelloss would have to be sure he planned his moves accordingly. There was no telling when and where his companions would be attacked and eventually someone who was an actual threat would come along to try for the bounty.

The so-called 'assassins' standing in the room with him were a nuisance at best. None of them could possibly hold a candle to either Lina or Zelgadis in battle. However, Xelloss couldn't let them cause trouble again either. It was quite apparent from the two assassination attempts that he'd foiled so far, that Lina and Zelgadis wouldn't be able to do much if they were caught completely off guard by underhanded tactics.

"Thank you for the information," Xelloss smiled at the Master in his unsettling manner again. "Normally, I would go ahead and kill you all right now, but lucky for you, I need some errands done."

The Master nodded his head quickly and the rest of the assassins followed his lead, "Oh yes! Whatever you need, we'd be more than happy to help you." He was eager to do whatever it took to get Xelloss to spare his life.

The Mazoku released the man and the black flames that surrounded the assassins blazed stronger before pieces of it broke away to engulf each of the men momentarily before the flame extinguished, leaving a black Mazoku seal on each of their hands.

Various cries of 'What is this?' and 'What did you do to us?' echoed among the men. Xelloss just smiled at them innocently, "Oh, I neglected to mention that I've been laying a curse for you all this entire time. That curse will slowly grow and I'm sure you can guess what will happen once it spreads to your head or heart." The Mazoku was certainly gaining a hefty meal from their terror, "Of course, if you do as I say, you won't have to worry about it anymore."

"We'll do anything you say!" the Master begged.

"Well then, each of you go to the other Assassin's Guilds and give them this message," he commanded them with all the hellish malice of a demon of his caliber, "any and all that try to collect the bounty on Lina Inverse and Zelgadis Greywords will meet an excruciating and tortuous death."

* * *

><p>AN<p>

Xelloss is pissed!

I know is death threat was cliche... but then... what death threat isn't cliche? :P

I know the assassins in this chapter weren't really able to put up much of a fight... but with countless killers now after Lina and Zel, I'm sure there are a few like our dead killer that think that their stealth and mastery of their weapons would be enough to take out their targets when they least expected it. It might be more than enough to work against their usual assassination marks (politicians, wealthy land owners and the like) but when up against Xelloss, Lina and Zelgadis the murder attempts of the lower rung assassins are pathetic at best. Don't worry though! There will actually be some competent bounty hunters after our heroes so there will eventually be some actual battle scenes! :D

Please review! Xelloss will kill any assassins after you if you do! Lol

Also! If anyone wants to beta for me let me know! I'm especially interested in the best way to phrase certain things if anyone is particularly good with that. (I spent like 20 minutes each on a few different paragraphs in this chapter just thinking of the best way to phrase it). Also, I need some help trying to come up with different ways to show the same actions that they do a lot. And quite frankly, I'm out of ideas of different ways to show that Xelloss is smirking. The smarmy jerk does it a lot lol


	15. Blinding Abyss

AN

This first part of this chapter really got me stuck for a while. But I'm fairly happy with how I was able to get through the part I was having trouble with.

* * *

><p>"When do you think Xelloss will come back?"<p>

Zelgadis looked up to regard Pakota from where he sat across the campfire. "When he feels like it I guess." He snorted. It would be just like Xelloss to leave them trapped in his dimension for longer than necessary just to irritate them.

The prince didn't really seem pleased by that answer but went back to staring into the campfire, lost in his thoughts and muttered to himself under his breath, "He better not have torn up my city."

He couldn't have been certain of how much time had passed with no moon or stars in the sky, but Zelgadis guessed that maybe about two hours had gone by since Xelloss had trapped them in his pocket dimension. Most everyone had fallen asleep at some point, all except Pakota, Sylphiel and himself.

After finding out the situation and agreeing to a temporary stalemate in their duel, Gourry and Zangalus promptly passed out. No doubt exhausted from their day long battle and not worried enough about their current situation to stay awake. Despite Gourry's recovery from his injuries, Zelgadis could easily tell that Syphiel was still worried for him and was only still awake to watch over him. She would clearly be the doting wife type. The chimera glanced at her where she sat not far from Pakota and wondered how long it would take her to snatch Gourry up now that Lina was out of the equation.

He smirked to himself. The blonde swordsman probably wouldn't get it through his head that Sylphiel wanted to date him unless she flat out kissed him and the shy girl wasn't likely to do that anytime soon. Zelgadis chuckled softly and made a silent bet with himself that it would take them a year to get together at the absolute earliest.

The chimera glanced over to Lina where she lay on the ground fast asleep at the far edge of the lighted area of the clearing, facing away from and far enough away from the campfire that the light wouldn't bother her while she slept. He couldn't really fault Sylphiel and Gourry for their inability to communicate. He and Lina weren't really any better. The only reason they were even in their current situation was because of Xelloss. He knew just as well as the other two involved that no deeper relationship would have developed if it wasn't for the demon pushing them into it.

Zelgadis wasn't happy with the ordeal at first, but he had to admit, at least to himself, that he was growing used to it much quicker than he had expected. Most of the time, he still wanted to smack Xelloss around for being such an arrogant smartass, but he had to appreciate what the Mazoku's actions had done to bring he and Lina closer together – and Xelloss too he guessed. He still wasn't completely comfortable to find that he was actually growing _fond_ of the demon, but was slowly coming to terms with the fact that he was starting to look forward to the Mazoku's unpredictable actions. Though, he liked to think that he looked forward to Lina and himself getting 'revenge' on Xelloss for whatever tricks he pulled more.

He knew full well that the priest's reasons for starting this whole situation were completely in his own self-interest, but the chimera could agree, at least in his own mind, with the idea that it was benefiting the two humans as well.

Zelgadis was just thinking about following Lina's example and going to sleep when he felt a hand on his shoulder. _"For once it seems like your deep thoughts aren't gloomy and brooding."_

The chimera quickly turned his head to scowl at Xelloss, but was surprised to find that he was nowhere to be seen. When he heard his voice again, he realized that the Mazoku was using the same telepathic voice that only he could hear when he'd left them trapped in the pocket dimension. _"I can't tell exactly what you're thinking but I can take a guess that it must be related to Lina and myself." _However, this time the demon's voice was accompanied by a pressure on the side of his neck that Zelgadis' human mind interpreted as Xelloss' incorporeal hand touching his skin.

Zelgadis hissed under his breath, "Xelloss, what the hell are you doing? Just show yourself and get us out of here." He was thankful that he was far enough away from Pakota and Sylphiel that they shouldn't be able to hear him.

"_In a bit."_ The invisible pressure moved down along the chimera's spine.

The sensation moved around his side and to his chest, and as the 'touch' moved lower on his stomach, Zelgadis was wondering if he should reconsider his earlier thought about looking forward to Xelloss' unpredictable actions.

The chimera hissed under his breath again, "Why don't you go harass Lina?"

Xelloss' chuckle echoed in his mind and seemed to bounce around, _"I already am. Within my own dimension, its an easy thing to influence her dreams and do this to you if I don't take on a physical form. Though I admit, it does divide my attention."_

Zelgadis turned to look at Lina, trying not to attract any attention from Pakota or Sylphiel. It was subtle, but the redhead was certainly in a dream state. She wriggled a little, rolled over so she was facing Zelgadis and her mouth started to twitch a bit as if she must be talking to someone in her dream. Though Lina dreaming wasn't proof that Xelloss was influencing her, Zelgadis knew the demon didn't actually lie.

He wasn't able to wonder for too long about what the redhead might be dreaming about as Xelloss' disembodied hand rubbed him through the front of his pants. The chimera almost gasped at the sudden sensation but was quick to bite his tongue to keep himself from making noise.

Zelgadis was both glad and angry that Xelloss wasn't appearing so the others could see him. On the one hand, it would not do at all to have the priest groping him while they were around the others like this, and on the other hand, Zelgadis wanted him to be in a physical body so he could sock him one right in the smug smile that would no doubt be on his face.

He was starting to have a hard time keeping the volume on his voice to a hush as the pressure continued to rub his groin through his clothing. "Xelloss, knock it off."

The demon's voice seemed to purr inside his head, _"I don't want to."_

Zelgadis was going to have to wring his neck when he got the chance to. In the meantime, he decided he needed to do something, anything, to keep Pakota and Sylphiel from noticing him talking under his breath or fidgeting.

He stood up abruptly and turned around from them in one fluid motion and began walking toward the edge of the clearing behind him. He had to clear his throat to try and get his voice level and nonchalant, "I'm going to go to sleep. Wake me up if Xelloss shows up, I'd like to be the first to _strangle him._"

Pakota's answer went mostly unheard while the demon's singsong voice jingled in his thoughts again, _"My my, always so angry."_

"That's what you try for isn't it?" the chimera whispered back as he lay down on the grass right next to where the clearing abruptly turned into inky blackness and faced himself away from the others, which also meant that he was staring directly into the void.

Xelloss' voice seemed to Zelgadis to come from every direction but from no place at all. _"You're right about that."_

After the chimera had settled down on the grass, the invisible hand returned to grope him, joined by another on his chest. Zelgadis tried to move his leg to block the assault on his lower region but the ghost hand was completely unaffected by the move.

"_I'm afraid that won't work while we're here."_ The touches seemed to be directly on the chimera's skin now, despite the fact that he was still fully clothed. _"Things don't work the same here as they do in the normal world."_

Zelgadis tried his hardest to keep his voice low, even and uncaring, "So I noticed."

Despite trying his best to seem uncaring and stoic, the youth couldn't contain a gasp of surprise when a pair of purple eyes suddenly appeared in the darkness right in front of him. _"Why don't you come over here with me? You're not very fun when you're forcing yourself to lay there like a board."_

The surprise was immediately replaced with irritation after realizing the eyes were just Xelloss, "You know why I'm trying to ignore you, and I can't just go over there, even if they don't see me move, Pakota and Sylphiel would eventually notice I'm gone and start trying to look for me."

"_You worry too much Zelgadis." _bBlack tendrils of inky darkness began to creep out of the edge of the void and slowly cover the chimera. _"Those two are more or less asleep on their feet." _

Zelgadis couldn't help but worry a little as the wispy demonic aura washed over him. _"But since I'm feeling very generous right now, I'll put your mind at ease." _

The chimera heard something in the clearing behind him and turned his head around just in time to see Pakota hitting the ground, Sylphiel must have been the first sound he heard, because she was already laying on the ground and out cold. "What did you do?"

"_I simply put them to sleep."_ Zelgadis could feel himself being pulled into the black abyss. _"Now you don't have to worry about them."_

On the other side of the darkness, Zelgadis could see nothing at all. His heart started to race despite his best efforts to keep himself calm. He could feel what seemed to be the ground beneath him, and what could only be Xelloss' touch still on him, but the world was completely devoid of light no matter which direction he looked. He felt as though he had gone blind, but he had heard from Rezo so long ago, that even being blind, you could still understand certain things because of the feeling of the sun on your skin or the feel of the wind.

Where Zelgadis found himself now was something completely different. There was no sun, no wind, no light and no smell. Because he couldn't see it, he wasn't even sure that his body was there except for the fact that he could feel the nonexistent ground against his back and Xelloss' ghostly touches still on him. It was a completely ethereal experience.

When the chimera tried to ask the demon if this was his revenge for them putting cuffs on him, he became fairly frightened when he realized that he couldn't even hear the sound of his own voice.

Xelloss must have heard the question however, in his realm of distorted physics, because Zelgadis heard his amused reply in his mind. _"Perhaps."_

The chimera just _knew_ he would have been smirking if he'd been in his physical body. The smug creep.

Speaking but not hearing the sound of his own voice disturbed him too much. It felt like one of those dreams where he was screaming for help for one reason or another but no sound would come out no matter how raw his throat felt from yelling.

Working on a hunch, Zelgadis thought in his own mind, _"You are such a bastard Xelloss."_

His guess turned out to be correct because in this particular space the demon had heard him. _"I find it humorous that you continue using that insult despite the fact that you know I wasn't born in the way that humans are familiar with."_

"_Fine then. I'll just call you a _smartass_ then."_

Zelgadis tried his best to keep himself from panicking at the deafening and blinding blackness that he was in. However, it was harder to do so when the feeling of the invisible ground completely disappeared and the only things left that let the shaman know that he still existed was Xelloss' touching that never ceased since entering the void, the demon's voice in his mind and Zelgadis' own thoughts.

It felt as though Xelloss' ghostly physical form had moved to embrace him from behind as the chimera floated in the sea of nothingness. _"I'd actually prefer that you called me something more affectionate."_ The demon's hands caressed Zelgadis' chest soothingly while disembodied lips kissed the side of his neck.

For whatever reason, it seemed like Xelloss' mood had changed from earlier. Zelgadis was relieved that the priest's touching had become merely soothing while he was disoriented and afraid while in the drifting darkness, but he wondered why the Mazoku had changed the plans he'd seemed to have.

"_Because you're so adorably frightened right now. I just can't seem to keep myself from simply calming you for some reason."_

Oh right. In this place, all of Zelgadis' thoughts were shared with Xelloss.

If anyone could see his face, he was certain he would have been blushing from embarrassment at feeling so afraid.

He could hear the demon chuckle slightly, _"There's no need to be afraid. Out of any place you could possibly be, this is by far the safest for you."_

Zelgadis tried to touch what felt like Xelloss' arm wrapped around his chest but was distressed to find that his hand could feel nothing at all, not even his own torso. He tried to keep himself distracted by asking, _"Where are we?"_

A hand ran through the chimera's hair, which he was shocked to find felt like a hand being run through the hair he used to have – not wire-like strands at all.

"_We are on the Astral Plane. Inside my own consciousness to be specific."_

Zelgadis was surprised and more than a little confused by that, _"We're... inside yourself?"_

"_You may not have ever actually been on the Astral Plane before, but as an experienced Shaman, you should know that the natural laws of the Physical Plane don't apply here." _The demon's nonexistent hand continued to stroke through Zelgadis' soft hair comfortingly. _"That's why your perception of your body is not that of a golem."_

Xelloss touched the youth's face to emphasize his point and Zelgadis almost felt like he might cry when he could feel the invisible touch run over the smooth skin of his cheeks and chin. He didn't feel the touch hit a single stone on his face, and now that he was aware of the difference, he couldn't feel the arm around his chest brushing against any of the stones he normally had embedded in his flesh there either.

He knew the Mazoku would be able to feel all of his overwhelmed emotions, so he didn't even bother trying to keep them hidden. _"I'm... normal again here?"_

Xelloss' soft, comforting kisses returned on his neck and the chimera could feel a small frown against his skin for a moment. _"I'm afraid not."_

The hand that was stroking his face moved to touch one of his ears so Zelgadis could feel the sensation and his heart that was previously full of hope sank like a stone. His ears were just as long and pointed as they'd been for the last several years. In fact, he thought they might have even been longer than normal.

The feeling of Xelloss' hand disappeared from his ear and reappeared on one of his hands. Zelgadis felt his stomach lurch a bit when the pressure against the extremity made him aware that his own hands had long claws that must have been vicious looking if he'd been able to see them.

Zelgadis tried to swallow the lump in his throat and did his best to remain calm, but without a whole lot of success. _"What is this?"_

The priest's hand was removed from his and it returned to the youth's hair to resume the soothing motions of before. _"As you know, when the Red Priest altered you, your soul was merged with that of a Brau Demon. On the Astral Plane, a human's soul is the same as their Astral Body."_

The chimera felt sick to his stomach. _"So my soul looks like a monster too then?"_

Both of Xelloss' ghostly arms wrapped around his torso to embrace him tighter and replied softly. _"The thing about humans is, their souls can change. Just like Mazoku, your presence on the Astral Plane is a direct representation of your true strength and power. You might say that your current perception of yourself and your inability to see or hear anything here is your 'default' state."_ One of Xelloss' hands moved to stroke a pointed ear affectionately. _"Humans are always capable of making themselves stronger. That's why they have so much more potential than other races."_

Xelloss' words made him feel somewhat better and for once, instead of focusing on the bad, he saw opportunities. _"So if I can find a way to strengthen my soul, I could become more powerful?"_

The demon smiled against the chimera's neck, _"Yes, you could. However, it's very difficult for humans. Even though they have the potential, very few of the human race have been able to even reach the Astral Plane with the whole of their consciousness and travel through it with their own power, let alone strengthen their Astral Forms."_

Zelgadis was pretty sure of the type of answer he might get but he had to ask, _"Is it something you could teach me?"_

The demon chuckled, _"I've never taught such a thing before but I might be willing to try if I were to get something in return."_

The chimera sighed in annoyance but couldn't hear the sound himself. It figured the Mazoku would charge a 'fee'.

"_For the moment, I'm afraid we should return to the Physical Plane."_ Xelloss' disembodied voice sighed in disappointment, _"Lina has been complaining that she feels she'll be sick from the lack of gravity here, despite my telling her the feeling is all in her mind."_

Zelgadis was surprised by that, _"Lina's here too?"_

"_If you'd had more control on the Astral Plane, you would have seen and heard her right next to you all this time." _He couldn't help but laugh at the chimera's shock. _"As I mentioned before, in these places amidst my own power, I'm not limited by the physics of the realm you're most familiar with. Even less so here inside my own consciousness."_

Without thinking, Zelgadis reached out a hand, searching to find the sorceress in the darkness.

"_That won't do any good. With your current abilities on the Astral Plane, you can't even touch yourself, let alone someone else. If you want to see her, we'll have to go back."_

The chimera nodded his head, knowing the Mazoku would see it, but still using his temporarily telepathic voice, _"Ok."_

Without anymore warning, Zelgadis was reintroduced to the Physical Plane, along with all the weight of gravity that he never really noticed before. Though Xelloss had made him reappear standing on his feet, the chimera was quickly brought to his knees as he was promptly made aware of the contents of his stomach again, and suddenly felt as though he might be sick.

From where he was crumpled on the ground, fighting to make sense of the world he was seeing, smelling and feeling again, he saw Lina not far from him, on her hands and knees on the ground, already having lost the battle to keep her dinner in her stomach.

After the black void, being assaulted by the sight and smell of her sick when he was already fighting to keep himself together made him lose his grip immediately and he felt his stomach lurch before he lost its contents as well.

"Oh my, that's quite strange." Zelgadis could see Xelloss' booted feet and the end of his staff out of the corner of his vision that was finally stopping its spinning. "I didn't expect that reaction at all."

The chimera wiped his mouth while Lina looked as though she was still trying to get her own vision to stay in one place. She'd stopped vomiting at least, so she would likely be fine again soon. She asked him in a weak voice, "How many humans have you taken to the Astral Plane before Xelloss?"

The Mazoku looked at the girl thoughtfully for a moment before answering. "Hmm, I guess you two would be the first. Though technically we do pass through it whenever I teleport you somewhere, but I suppose the fraction of a second that we're there is too quick for you to notice any differences."

The chimera grit his teeth, "Then how would you know how we would have reacted when we returned to the Physical Plane?"

Xelloss laughed unconcerned, "I guess I wouldn't have known at all." He shrugged with a smile.

Lina ignored him, putting her hands to her temples to try and hurry up getting her vision cleared but Zelgadis wasn't as amused by the statement as the demon was. "If you've never taken humans to the Astral Plane before, how did you know all that stuff you told me about the abilities of the human soul there."

The Mazoku smiled happily and offered a hand to the youth to help him off the ground, "Because while I look at you now, I can also see your Astral Body, your soul, on the Astral Plane as well. I can see everyone that way."

The shaman took the offered hand and was able to stand on his still shaky legs. He'd heard of something like that before but he'd only had a very vague idea of the ability. The trip to the Astral Plane had given him a little more insight to what it was exactly Mazoku were able to see. "You mean Mazoku have something like a sixth sense or a second vision that sees the Astral Plane while on the Physical one?"

Xelloss considered the idea for a moment, "I suppose you could call it something like that. But it's more complicated than just that. I think that it would be like trying to explain what colors looked like to someone who's been blind their whole life."

The chimera nodded his head in understanding. When he was young and still assisting Rezo, he had tried to explain just that to the man without any success. It was something that was simply impossible to do when the person you were trying to explain it to had no reference to compare to.

"That's great and all you guys, but can we talk about that stuff later when I can actually pay attention too." Lina had given up on trying to get her vision stilled and had covered her eyes with her hand instead. She idly hoped the feeling was like a visual migraine and it would stop if she kept her eyes closed. "I don't want to miss out on any information that Xelloss actually shares _willingly_."

Xelloss laughed slightly, "I guess it is a bit rare, but this time I don't really see any harm in telling you. Knowing how Mazoku see you won't really make you any more of a threat to my race then you already are."

Zelgadis may have just been imagining things, but reading between the lines he interpreted what Xelloss was saying as 'I told you those things so you would know how _I_ see you.'

He wasn't sure if it was an affirmation of his guess or if Xelloss was mocking him, when the demon looked up at him, clearly having read his emotions, and smirked at him mischievously.

Dismissing his staff, the dark priest bent down to rub his hand soothingly along Lina's back before picking her up to carry her bridal style. She made a few noises that sounded like she might throw up again while she was jostled into the carrying position, but was able to keep herself from being sick anymore. She was fairly certain it had to do with her already having nothing in her stomach anymore.

She risked a look out from underneath her hand to try and figure out where they were. So far, she'd only been able to see grass covered ground as she'd immediately been sick after returning from the Astral Plane.

Judging from the abundance of flowers and trees and the fact that they were surrounded by walls but still outside, she assumed they must have been in an inner garden of the palace. She didn't know the palace had an inner garden. Really, the place was just so big it was beyond ridiculous.

Xelloss came up to a nearby bench and lay Lina down on it, careful not to move her around more than necessary.

She curled up as much as the narrow sitting space allowed her to, still not feeling too well, "Where's everyone else?"

"They should be waking up about now, right where we left them. They're no longer in my dimension, so someone will probably come along soon looking for you two." He pulled out two sheets of paper from inside his bag and held them up for them to see. "In the meantime, I wanted to talk to you both in private about this matter."

Zelgadis' jaw dropped as he read the papers, "Five thousand gold for _each_ of us?!"

Forgetting all about her stomach being upset, Lina shot up suddenly to sit upright and snatched the papers out of Xelloss' hands. She had to put a hand over her eyes again to stop the world from spinning from the drastic movements, but she quickly forced down her nausea to read the documents.

The papers in her hands were Zelgadis' and her own wanted posters. The artist who drew them did much better than the last person who had put their faces on bounty fliers, but the pictures still made them look fairly evil. Maybe that was just how they made everyone look on wanted posters?

She continued to read the information on the page. It definitely said five thousand gold, but not really much else that Zelgadis and she didn't already know about. "Hey, why don't we-"

"You can't turn yourself in Lina." the chimera interrupted her, already knowing her line of thinking.

"Yes, this isn't a regular bounty where you could break yourself out of jail after your accomplice collects your bounty," Xelloss agreed grimly. "In order to get the reward, the only thing they want is your head."

Lina paled and rubbed her neck, sudden visions floating in her mind of it being cut, "Oh... right."

That was kind of an important thing to forget. Her sick feeling must have been affecting her ability to think straight.

"I'll ignore the fact that you trapped us in your damned dimension for now, if you tell us what you found out at the guild Xelloss." Zelgadis was still clearly upset by the demon's previous actions, but he knew which issue should take priority.

Xelloss ignored the chimera's grouchiness. "Well, it would seem the person who wants you dead goes by the alias 'Z' and is in the city of Porthaven," the priest told them while unfolding a map he had taken out of his bag. "That city should be south, only a few hundred or so miles farther than where the barrier used to be."

"Outside the barrier?" Lina crossed her arms, "That's surprising."

"From the little information I have to work with, I think this person must be smarter than the average vengeance seeker. They probably picked that city to stay in because it's out of the way." He kept unfolding the map until it was too big to hold anymore, so he placed it on the ground and spread it out, though there was clearly a lot more to the piece of paper that hadn't been unfolded yet.

The demon pointed to a city on the extremely detailed and precisely drawn map. "Ah, there it is. Its on the coast on one of the peninsulas west of the Desert of Destruction. So I doubt you had been through there on your way to the Temple of the Fire Dragon King."

Lina and Zelgadis looked over the massive map. Marked on it were cities, mountains, rivers and lakes they hadn't even heard of before and the areas beyond the previously held barrier were just as detailed as the area within.

The merchant's daughter saw profit when she looked at it, "Xelloss, where did you get that map?"

He grinned at her and began folding up the oversized map again, "I'm afraid that's a secret I can't tell you."

She huffed but noticed when he had it all folded up again that it was much smaller folded up than a map of such huge size should have been. Obviously there was some kind of magic on it.

"Whatever," she said while rolling her eyes. "Anyway, we should make plans to leave for this Porthaven place as soon as possible."

"And what makes you think I'd let you go there?" The priest's charming smile didn't really match up with his words.

"What's your problem lately Xelloss?" Lina didn't like being told what she could and couldn't do. "You've been acting like some jealous, overprotective, possessive idiot all day!" She was glad she was finally feeling better, otherwise her anger might have made her feel sick again.

His grin fell instantly as if her words had slapped him in the face. Xelloss' brows furrowed while he thought for a moment and he seemed surprised when he realized she was right. "So I have."

"You can't stop us from going Xelloss," Zelgadis interjected. "You remember, we have a way to keep you from using your powers now." He pointed meaningfully at the cuffs on the demon's wrists.

The Mazoku seemed fairly perturbed but didn't offer any more arguments. "Well then, I suppose there's nothing I can do except take you there."

Lina was quick to decline, "You're not going to teleport us there. I don't want anything to do with the Astral Plane for a while." She couldn't suppress the chill that ran up her spine from just thinking about that black void. "We can get there the old fashioned way."

"You know we'll be hounded every step of the way by bounty hunters," Zelgadis reminded her.

She smirked smugly in response, "I'm fine with that. Now that I know what to expect, I won't be letting my guard down again."

Xelloss dismissed thoughts of his own peculiar behavior to ask Zelas about later. The list of symptoms of his odd condition seemed to keep growing. He certainly hoped Xanas had new information from his research soon.

The demon smiled darkly from underneath his bangs, "I don't think we'll have to worry about too many assassins for a while."

Zelgadis could feel a chill in the air, "Xelloss... what did you do to the assassins at the guild?"

The demon's smile was impish and he answered uncaringly, "Oh, I put a curse on them." His chuckle could easily be considered evil, "I told them if they gave a warning to the other guilds to stay away from you they wouldn't have to worry about my curse. But well... I'm sure you know there's more than one way for someone not to worry about things."

The sorceress swallowed a lump in her throat, "You mean your curse will kill them as soon as they give their messages to the other guilds?"

For an answer, the demon merely continued to smile in a very unsettling manner.

Zelgadis was relieved that it would mean less assassins coming after them, but at the same time, he didn't want to know how the curse might kill the men. "Well, I suppose them dying after they give their warning would keep most people away, but it might actually attract some of the stronger assassins."

"Not to worry," Xelloss' smile turned much more bright. "Between yourselves, your companions, your new weapons and myself, I can't imagine that any assassin could pose a real threat in battle. And as far as sneak attacks - I won't be letting that happen again." He suddenly sighed in annoyance, "Though I'm afraid I'll have to deal with that tomorrow. However, you should be fine tonight."

Lina and Zelgadis didn't get a chance to ask him what his plans were, but were quick to understand why he was annoyed as Amelia came running into the inner garden toward them.

She rushed up to them, relief written all over her face at finding them, "Thank goodness you're all alright!" She had to stop to catch her breath for a moment before continuing. She must have been running all over the massive palace looking for them.

"When we woke up and were out of Xelloss-san's dimension and you weren't there I was worried." She clasped her hands together in front of her and wrung them together. "And to make matters worse, I heard there's a bad fire burning down all the buildings by the river." She sighed in relief, "I'm glad it doesn't seem like you're the cause of it Lina-san."

Lina and Zelgadis had already started eyeing the demon suspiciously at the mention of the fire. He acted completely innocent right up until the point Pakota stormed into the garden.

"_Xelloss_! I knew you were up to no good!" The prince stomped right up to him, unconcerned that the demon could kill him without any effort and grabbed him by the front of his shirt to yell in his face. "You bastard! You're trying to burn down my city aren't you?"

The Mazoku smiled pleasantly, though with a slight smirk to the edges that gave away the evidence that he really was the one to blame. He had to be irritating anyway though, "What makes you so sure it was me?"

Pakota shook him a few times by his collar, "The fire is _black_ you jackass!" The former plushie could have sworn he felt a few of his blood vessels burst in his forehead. "The people tell me that nothing they do to put the fire out works at all!" The volume of his voice seemed to keep raising with each new sentence.

Xelloss didn't seem the least bit bothered by the death grip on his collar. He allowed the prince to touch him only because it came with an anger that was so satisfying.

"I suppose I must have forgotten to dismiss my flames. Though I don't see why you're so upset, I only set them on your local assassin's guild." He smiled, acting like he'd done Pakota a favor, though fully knowing the reason why the prince was upset.

Pakota shook him back and forth a few more times harshly. "The fire is spreading! It's taken over that whole block of the city and there's nothing we can do to stop it!" Lina was beginning to wonder if he would start foaming at the mouth.

Xelloss pried his fingers off his shirt as easily as if they had belonged to child and sighed in mock-annoyance, "I suppose I can help you put out the fire since you're so helpless."

The prince snarled and made to grab him again but the demon had already disappeared. Since he was no longer able to physically take out his anger on the priest, he screamed into the summer night. "You better not let me see you back here for a long time Xelloss!"

The only response he got was Lina's snickering coming from his right. He turned to glare at her with fury and she put her hands up in front of her and tightened her mouth to show she wasn't going to say anything – though she couldn't do much about her grin.

* * *

><p>Lina tried to make herself as comfortable as possible on the chaise lounge in Amelia's room. It was obvious the piece of furniture was made for sitting on, not sleeping. The cushion was raised up on one side and made is so she couldn't lay flat. The sorceress thought she was probably more comfortable when they were camping.<p>

Because the palace staff was still trying to clean up the bloody mess in her room, Lina had been forced to sleep in the same room as Amelia and Sylphiel for the night if she'd wanted to get any sleep before the sun rose soon. Despite knowing of the sorceress' tendencies to toss and torn, the princess still offered to share the overly large bed between the three of them, but Lina had declined – much to the relief of the other two girls.

It had been a long day and an even longer night and all she wanted to do was fall asleep. However, she couldn't stop thinking about Zelgadis and Xelloss.

She wondered if they were in the chimera's room asleep together as the three of them had been doing the past few nights. She wished she could have just gone to Zelgadis' room instead of Amelia's, but that would have taken lots of explaining that she wasn't ready for yet.

The protection spell that Amelia and Syphiel had put on all the guest rooms made her feel secure, but she couldn't help but worry about Zelgadis. She knew that was ridiculous – he had the same spells on his room as the girls did and his stone skin made him much harder to kill. However, she couldn't help the nagging feeling that kept her awake and made her want to check on him.

She tried her best to ignore the feeling and turned over on the lounge for what must have been the hundredth time.

She was definitely going to sleep in late in the morning.

* * *

><p>Despite Lina's assumptions, Xelloss hadn't gone to Zelgadis' room but had instead made his way back to Wolf Pack Island.<p>

He would have much preferred spending what little was left of the night with the chimera, but he needed to check to see if Xanas had returned with any news about his condition that only grew more troublesome by the day.

He sighed dejectedly as soon as he realized he couldn't feel the Mazoku scholar's presence anywhere on the island.

With no other options, he began heading to his master's chambers to see if she had heard anything yet.

The priest hardly had a chance to start walking down the hall before the air behind him was displaced and an arm wrapped around his neck in a half hug, half choke hold.

"Luna-san, I really wish you'd wouldn't do that." He smiled up at the elder Inverse girl somewhat nervously.

She knew he was referring to her teleporting behind him without him being able to sense her rather than the pseudo choke hold. "What's the matter Xelloss? Don't like getting a taste of your own medicine?"

His laugh was a little too anxious for his liking, "Ah, I guess you got me there."

The priest reached up to try and pry her arm off from around his neck, but as soon as he did, he really wished he hadn't.

She snatched his wrist suddenly and held the cuff on it up so she could examine it closely, "Xelloss... what's this?" She asked him, but the smirk on her face was a dead give away that she already had a pretty good idea.

"Well I'd love to talk to you some more but I have to go Luna-san," he ignored her question while trying desperately to wiggle his way out of her iron grip that kept him rooted to the Physical Plane in that same manner he hadn't quite figured out yet.

Her devilish grin was the only warning he got that something was terribly wrong before the cuff still in her grip began to glow with its own magic and flew around behind his back to snap together with its mate at the same time she let go of his neck.

The demon was starting to wonder if this woman was actually more of the embodiment of evil than he was. No wonder his mistress liked the human so much.

Xelloss pulled at the cuffs, trying hard to separate them and did his best to ignore the emotion that kept coming back lately whenever he was around the Knight of Ceiphied. He refused to admit it might actually be panic.

The usually sly trickster was actually at a loss for words, stammering out a few in a very unimpressive manner, "How did...?

The carrier of the Will of Ceiphied laughed loftily, "My sister isn't really that experienced with blood magic. She has lots of power in the spell, but there are actually a few important flaws." She walked toward him with a sudden air of menace, causing him to back up, where she took the opportunity to stick out her foot and trip him up, making him land hard on the marble floor without his hands to stop his fall.

Her mood shifted again and she smiled somewhat insanely before bending over to touch the cuff on one of his ankles, "Case in point."

At her touch, the anklets began to glow with their own magic and snapped together, completely sealing his powers and strength.

Xelloss was fairly certain that if he actually needed oxygen, he would have blacked out right about then. "How did you do that?"

The manic woman laughed, "Lina clearly has no clue that you even know me because the blood magic she and this Zelgadis cast on these shackles is just barely vague enough to allow very close blood relatives to activate them." She laughed with a slight air of derangement for a moment, "But of course, only if they know how to activate such a spell without knowing the 'Words of Power' like I do."

The priest was overwhelmed with the odd impulse to beat his head against the marble flooring a few times. He couldn't understand why he felt the need, but he did it anyway.

This caused Luna to laugh even harder before shouting out into the depths of the mansion, "Hey Zelas! You've got to come see this!"

Luna thought Xelloss looked very much like a kicked puppy when his master suddenly appeared before them and stared at her subordinate, not at all amused.

She raised an eyebrow at him while she finished tying the sash to her bathrobe. "Can I not even take a bath in peace without someone causing trouble?"

The knight all but danced up to Zelas and pulled on her sash to untie the bow she just made, "What kind of peace are you expecting? You live on an island with creatures of chaos." She smiled mischievously as she spun away from the Demon Lord with her sash in hand.

"And yet you're more chaotic than any of the Mazoku that live under my roof." Zelas sighed, used to her behavior, and summoned a cigarette, completely uncaring that her nude front was exposed.

The Beast Master's attention turned again to her priest, "Well, I can tell this is going to be a good story." She gestured in an almost blase way to his binding cuffs with the hand that held her cigarette. She turned and started to head down the hall. "Come along then, you can tell me while I finish my bath."

Xelloss had a thousand years of psychological conditioning from Zelas that kept him unable to speak until she was ready to hear what she wanted from him. However, as Luna grabbed him by the end of his cloak and used it to drag him behind her like he was some sort of sack at the end of a rope, he wondered how soon he could get Lina and Zelgadis to make it worth his while for the trouble they were unknowingly causing him.

Luna purposefully dragged him around a corner too tight, causing him to knock his head on the stone pillar.

He'd get what he wanted from them that night if he had any control over the matter.

Which he did.

* * *

><p>AN<p>

Oh Xelloss... *facepalm* You should probably just not go back home while Luna is there. Lol

...yeah.. I can see I'm ending up making Luna crazier lol oh well, she's fun this way :D Somebody needs to knock Xelloss down a few pegs every now and then lol and really, since she's never really shown in official canon, I have lots of room to have fun with her personality :D

You could probably tell that I had originally intended the scene in the darkness to be sexy.. but Zel went and turned it into more of relationship growth type thing between him and Xelloss. Hey that works too. They still need that sort if stuff lol

So since 1 gold = 100 US dollars in my little version, the bounty for Lina and Zel is $500,000 each O_o Somebody's really pissed at them! lol

I'm sure you can tell what's coming up soooooon! *evil laugh*


	16. Agreed

AN

Oh man! Just the story without the author's notes clocks in at over 12,300 words! This is definitely the longest chapter so far! It took a lot of time to write too. I had such a hard time with a lot of segments, but I think this chapter came out pretty well :D Especially the content. Which by the way, this is a very NSFW chapter. teehee :3

* * *

><p>Zelgadis woke to the midday sun shining on his face through the tall arched windows of his room.<p>

He rubbed his eyes groggily and rolled over in his bed. He was surprised, even in his half awake mind, that Xelloss never came to bother him while he slept.

The chimera stumbled out of bed and glanced at the clock as he made his way to the bathroom to get ready for the day. It was already half past eleven, but frankly, he wasn't that surprised he'd slept in that long with the taxing day and night he'd had before he'd gone to bed.

After going about his morning activities, he got dressed in his usual off-white outfit. The one Lina had given him still needed to be washed, but he was thankful that for once, he'd had good luck and no one the night before had seemed to notice the evidence of intimate activities that had been left on his pant leg. No doubt the chaos of the evening had helped to keep everyone else too distracted to notice the stain.

The shaman wished he could wear the outfit again, but there would be no way he could until he'd be able to get it cleaned. He was going to have to remember to keep a towel or something along those lines with him in the future.

Zelgadis eventually made his way down to the royal family's personal dining hall where he'd heard most of his companions were from a maid he'd asked back upstairs in the guest hallway.

He was disappointed to find that Lina had not come downstairs yet, but noted with interest that Martina and Zangalus were eating brunch, acting like they completely belonged in the palace. Martina had even taken the chair at the head of the table where the king normally sat. It seemed she was still just as self-entitled as she'd always been.

Amelia, Gourry and Sylphiel were the only ones at the long dining table with them. The chimera figured that if Pakota had been present, the Xoana queen wouldn't have had the gall to sit where she was.

Zelgadis pulled up a chair next to the five others, "You two seem to have made yourself at home." As soon as he sat down, a maid came up and poured some coffee for him, already familiar with what he would want since they had been staying there for the last few days.

He nodded his thanks to her, only halfway paying attention to Martina's explanation about being invited to stay the previous night. He really wasn't awake enough to care much about the story she was telling about what led up to her and Zangalus staying in the palace.

"Hey! You should listen when people are talking to you," the queen yelled and pointed her finger at him.

The shaman looked at her from over his coffee mug with boredom, "I heard enough of what you said. To summarize your long winded story, you missed the check-in time for the inn you were staying at the night before last and Pakota felt sorry for you and let you stay in the palace since there are some vacant guest rooms now that the re-crowning ceremony is over." Before going back to drinking his coffee he added, "You really should learn how to be more concise."

Martina's face turned red with anger but instead of arguing with him she settled for glaring at him from across the table. No doubt Zangulus putting his hand on top of hers kept her from going into an all out tirade.

Zelgadis guessed even Martina was capable of maturing a little. If only a little.

"You won't be acting so sure of yourself after you pay me the money you owe me when Zangulus beats Gourry," she laughed in that haughty manner of hers.

Honestly, Zelgadis had forgotten about that silly bet he'd made with her. After all, he'd only done it to keep her distracted from upsetting Lina. But he wasn't about to let her get out of it either.

"I'd love to take the money you'll be owing _me_ to go get some nice Taforashian roasted pheasant for dinner, but Gourry and Zangulus will have to hold off on their rematch for now. We were able to find out more information about the bounty on Lina and myself and we should really make arrangements to leave as soon as possible."

Zangulus and Martina had apparently been filled in about the assassination attempts at some point because neither of them really seemed surprised by the declaration. If they were planning to ask him anything about it, Amelia beat them to it. "What did you find out?"

"Well, Xelloss was able to find out that the reward for Lina and me is five thousand gold each and the person who posted the bounty goes by the name 'Z'." At his words, Amelia turned and glared suspiciously at Zangulus.

He saw her look and barely caught himself before he could burst out laughing. "You think it was me? What makes you think I've got that much money?"

The justice seeker pointed accusingly at him from across the table, "You've put bounties on them both plus Gourry-san before!"

"Yeah, but that Eris woman was the one who was paying for that." He really acted more like he was reasoning with a child than trying to argue his innocence.

Surprisingly, Gourry was the one to come to his aid first before Martina, "Besides Amelia, it's not Zangulus' style to put out a hit on someone." He laughed brightly, not at all bothered when he said, "He'd rather be the one to kill someone he has a grudge against than have someone else do it for him."

The princess smiled nervously at him, guessing he didn't realize how morbid what he'd just said was.

"Besides, if you'd let me finish," Zelgadis continued in vexation, "You'd know that we also found out that this person seems to be running this fiasco with the Assassin's Guilds out of a city called Porthaven to the south."

Syphiel had been very quiet since Zelgadis had been in the dining room, having only spoken to greet him when he first arrived. "I think I know that city. Is it outside where the barrier used to be?"

He nodded his affirmation and she told them, "Prince Philionel was talking about that place in a meeting that I was present for a few weeks ago. I think he mentioned plans to start a shipping trade route with that city."

Amelia jumped up in excitement, "That's perfect! That means we should be able to get on one of the trade ships and go directly there. I'll go ask daddy right now if that would be alright."

She ran out of the dining room in a hurry before anyone had the chance to stop her, barreling into Lina who was just on the other side of the door. The two of them hit the floor hard with Lina taking the brunt of the impact.

The sorceress clutched at her head that had smacked the marble flooring. "Owww! Amelia! You need to stop running through doors before seeing what's on the other side!"

The princess untangled her limbs from the redhead and began casting a healing spell on the other girl's injury, "I'm so sorry Lina-san! I guess I got too excited."

Zelgadis had gotten up when he heard the commotion out in the hall and stood at the doorway to the dining room, "Are you two alright?"

Lina looked up at him, still gripping her head while Amelia continued to work her white magic, "I would be better if I could have started the day off without a concussion."

* * *

><p>Sometime later that afternoon, Pakota was in the office of his personal rooms staring at the half written notes that lay out on his desk.<p>

The prince was upset by the destruction it caused, but Gourry had already tested the Gorun Nova copy quite exhaustively. Since Pakota was there to witness the battle the day before, the prince already had a lot of new data to start working with for the next version. But first, he needed to write up reports of what he had seen when the sword of light was in action. That would unfortunately take some time as he kept getting interrupted.

After Xelloss had put his demonic fire out the night before, all that was left to do in the area was to clean up and rebuild. At this point, his people were getting exceedingly good at repairing damaged and run down buildings with all the forced experience that kept being thrown their way.

But even still, since they had just started the repair of those buildings, Pakota would occasionally be needed to make a decision on something or get a request for materials that he needed to get from trade from somewhere else.

He was starting to wonder if maybe they should just demolish all those buildings and just make something new. Perhaps a White Magic library or a new Sorcerer's Guild. He tapped his chin for a moment lost in thought, wondering what Amelia would like best.

Pakota was interrupted again by a new knock on his office door. He bid the person on the other side to come in, but instead of another carpenter, it was Lina and Zelgadis that walked into the room.

"You look like you're thinking hard." The redheaded greeted with her psuedo-insults, "Be careful doing that or you might cause the stuffing in your head to catch fire."

The former plushie always had to make snide comments in return of course, "I'm the only one around here that _doesn't_ start fires. Between you and Xelloss, there'll be nothing left standing in the world except restaurants in a few years.

She folded her arms across her chest, "I'm not _that_ bad about catching stuff on fire."

At Pakota and Zelgadis' deadpan stares she cleared her throat a little bit and decided to move on with why she came up to see the prince. "I heard from Martina that you're letting them stay in a guest room and that it's in a whole other wing in the palace that I didn't even know about. Since my room is still being cleaned up from that dead guy in there, I was hoping maybe I could borrow another room to have all to myself until we leave."

He shrugged uncaringly and started to look over his notes on Gorun Nova again, "That's fine I guess. Most of those rooms are empty now that the foreign ambassadors that were staying in them for the ball have gone home."

Lina snatched away the piece of paper that he was reading off his desk. Before he had a chance to start arguing with her she told him, "We all agreed, while you've been hidden up here, that we'll be leaving to take care of this assassin ordeal first thing tomorrow, and Amelia's coming with us." A smarmy grin grew on her face. "So if you want to get in any lovey-dovey time with her before we go, you should do it now."

Pakota's cheeks turned bright red and he snatched the paper back out of her hand. "Mind your own damn business!"

She laughed at his embarrassment and offered him a proverbial olive branch, though already knowing what he would say, "You can come with us if you want."

The prince frowned and sighed, "I wish I could, but I have a lot of things that need my attention here. Especially now that I've taken up my crown again."

Zelgadis smiled at him with what could almost be described as brotherly pride, "You'll make a great king someday. You really are responsible." His smile took on a slightly playful gleam for a moment. "Unlike other people I know."

Lina glowered at him, "Was that a crack at me?"

The chimera's only answer was to shrug slightly with that same smile, neither confirming nor denying her accusation.

She grumbled something about using him for target practice with Galveira later but he didn't need to have Xelloss' empathy to know that she wasn't as mad as she pretended to be.

Zelgadis ignored her mumbling and turned back to Pakota. "Anyway, since this other guest wing is so far away from the one we're in now, I was hoping it would be alright with you if I switched my room too. I know you've made security pretty tight now, but I think at least one of us should be nearby in case another assassin breaks into Lina's room again."

The prince was just about to remind him that Martina and, more notably, the capable swordsman Zangulus might not end up being in the room next door to Lina, but they would be in the same wing. However, he was stopped short when a thought popped into his head. He looked at the two of them suspiciously for a moment before his eyes widened and his jaw dropped slightly.

"Oh gods... It's true isn't it? I thought those maids were just jumping to conclusions and gossiping like they always do, but you two are together aren't you?"

Lina and Zelgadis could feel the blood drain from their faces and the redhead started sputtering, "What? No, no, no. Zelgadis is just – I mean we... what did the maids say?"

The chimera blushed in embarrassment and looked at her before closing his eyes and putting his forehead in his hand. So much for playing it cool.

Pakota's jaw dropped even more when he saw from their actions that what he had said really was true.

He didn't quite know how to process this new information and he seemed almost, if not more embarrassed than they were. He looked away from them, suddenly feeling too awkward to look them in the eye. "I heard the maids in the hall saying that between the two of you, it seemed like whenever one of your beds looked to have not been slept in, the other's was extra messy. And also something about them needing to replace a comforter and pillows and they had said you two must have been..." Half way through his recounting he'd already begun to trail off with a bright red face, but he'd been completely unable to say the last part.

Lina covered her own red face with both of her hands. With all the chaos going on lately, it never occurred to her or Zelgadis that their rooms had been getting cleaned and their beds had been made for them everyday. Of course the maids would have noticed a bed not having been slept in, Zelgadis' pillow that had practically exploded when she'd hit him over the head with it and most damning, that comforter the trio had left on the floor from the night of the ball that had been stained and torn by their activities.

At least it seemed like Pakota had no idea that Xelloss was involved. That would have been excruciatingly embarrassing to have to have explained on top of everything.

Zelgadis still hadn't said anything yet. He seemed to have gone into his old 'When things get out of control stay silent' mode, but his blush was just as bad as Lina's was. He just didn't see how there was anything in this situation that he could say to make it any less uncomfortable.

All the same, the sorceress took her hands away from her face and did her best to lessen their potential embarrassment for later. "Pakota, please don't say anything to everyone else about this. We don't know how they'll take it and we're not quite ready to deal with it yet."

He looked up at her, gobsmacked at her sincere plea and the fact that she actually asked him 'please'. The prince looked away again, crossing his arms, he tried to play up their usual back and forth, but it was completely ruined by the blush still on his face and the fact that he was almost mumbling. "As if I'd want to go around talking about what goes on in your bedroom. I'll have nightmares for the rest of my life just knowing the gist of it."

She didn't bite back at his words, though a few good retorts that involved him and Amelia did pop into her head. Instead, she breathed a small sigh of relief, "Thanks Pakota, we owe you one."

Despite what he'd just said, her former traveling companion couldn't resist taking the easy jab at her, though he did so with a smirk that was disrupted by his still overly red face. "We can call it even if you guys don't destroy any more of the palace bedding."

Lina and Zelgadis' blushes darkened impossibly further but neither of them had anything to say to that.

Quite some time after they'd left Pakota's office, and plenty of time for Lina to give Zelgadis an earful about what she thought of him not saying anything to help her out while she was busy sticking her foot in her mouth, the duo went outside to finally give their new weapons a try.

They had gone out into what was left of what Gourry and Zangulus had used for a battlefield, thinking it would be the best place. The overworked gardeners didn't have a problem with them using the trees that were already destroyed or toppled over for target practice since they hadn't had a chance to clean them up yet. All they cared about was the two magic users not causing any new destruction to the healthy foliage and grounds.

After an hour or so of using magic duplicates, Lina and Zelgadis found that they were both still fairly disappointed that the weapons only had a fraction of the power of the originals. Though, in the grand scheme of things, they were still very powerful tools that would no doubt come in handy. Lina knew that she would end up depending on the bow whenever she needed to fight during a certain few days every month. She hated losing her powers during those days more than any of the other 'symptoms'.

As for Zelgadis, he was already trying to think up how to cast an Astral Vine spell on a scientifically created magic blade. If he could figure it out, the Ragudo Mezegis copy might end up being as mighty as the original.

After they had come back inside, they had sat through what felt like an incredibly long dinner with most everyone of importance present, and even Martina and Zangulus had somehow gotten themselves a seat at the dining table again. However, Xelloss had not yet made another appearance, for which Pakota was grateful.

During the meal, it was mentioned that Prince Philionel and his entourage would be staying in Taforashia for a while longer, helping out wherever he could before he returned to Seyruun. However, it was agreed that Sylphiel would be traveling with Lina and the others once again. Phil was already worried that his daughter would be heading into a den of murders, even so, he couldn't and wouldn't stop her from helping her friends when they needed her. But knowing that such a skilled healer as Sylphiel would be there with them helped to ease his fears somewhat. Knowing that Amelia would be with such powerful fighters as Lina, Zelgadis and Gourry made him feel better too. Though knowing Lina's talent for attracting incredibly strong adversaries, his worries almost balanced out with his relief.

After many arguments and half-serious negotiations, Martina and Zangulus had invited themselves along on their journey to Porthaven as well. The queen stated that she hadn't yet gone to the cities to the south to 'ask for donations to Xoana' and that they had better be glad she was temporarily gracing them with her help and the blessings she brought with her of the 'Monsterous Zoemelgustar'. Her husband only seemed to care about the chance to fight Gourry again when they could spare the time and the opportunity to knock the teeth out of a few assassins.

A few Taforashian palace attendants were already out gathering the supplies they would need at Pakota's request. After about a week and a half of travel on foot, they would arrive at the same port city they had left from when they first traveled to the 'Outer World' a few years ago. From there, they would take one of the newly built boats meant for trading with the rest of the world to the city of Porthaven. None of them were quite sure how long that leg of the trip would take, but Prince Phil had heard the 'Clippers' could reach Porthaven in only about a week, though he hadn't read the reports on it yet as they had yet to officially start the trade route.

After the meal, Lina and Zelgadis retrieved their belongings from their rooms and moved them into the bedrooms they would be staying in that night. Though both of them already knew they'd really only be staying in one of the rooms. They realized they had to take advantage of the privacy the palace afforded them since they didn't really know when they'd get time alone together again.

The sorceress' original room still had a very large bloodstain on the floor but at least the dead body was gone, so it wasn't that upsetting to get her things from her room. She'd been around a whole lot worse before than just a big bloodstain after all.

It was already dark by the time Lina had settled into her new room. That dinner had been far too long for her liking.

She threw herself on the bed and stretched out, thankful for getting to sleep on an actual mattress after having to sleep on a lounge chair the previous night. She was going to miss sleeping in the palace. After the whole assassin nonsense was over, they'd have to come back and stay for a few weeks. She didn't think that Amelia would complain.

The sorceress wasn't at all surprised when there was a knock on her door and Zelgadis asked if he could come in. She didn't even get up when she called him in, instead still laying spread out on the bed, enjoying the softness.

Zelgadis had barely come into her room before the door was shut behind him and Xelloss appeared, his hand still on the door after he'd closed it.

"Oh good! You're both finally alone together. I had been wondering if I'd have to spirit you away from that exceedingly long dinner." The demon said with a pleasant smile.

At hearing his voice, Lina sat up straight in bed and Zelgadis had turned to glare at him in annoyance, "How long have you been hanging around Xelloss?"

"Long enough to know all of the plans for travel for the next few weeks. I must say, I'm interested that Martina-san has invited herself along. This little trip should be fairly entertaining."

Lina groaned, "Don't remind me. Anyway, if you were hanging around then, why didn't you just show up?"

Xelloss pointed his finger, as if pointing out a thought, "If you recall, Pakota-san does not wish to see me for a while." His smile turned impish, "Besides, I didn't think either of you would want anyone to know I was around this evening. I doubt either of you would appreciate the maids gossiping anymore than they already are."

Zelgadis and Lina's faces turned red at that and the chimera asked, "You were around when we talked to Pakota too?"

Xelloss seemed curious at that, "No, I had heard the maids in the kitchens while all of you were eating. Why? What happened when you talked to Pakota-san?"

The redhead was quick to deny anything, "Nothing! Nothing happened at all."

The priest looked at her with an air of mischievous suspicion, but he decided to drop the subject in favor of getting what he wanted out of her next.

"If you say so." He smiled at her innocently and began walking over to her. "Oh by the way, I've brought with me the item you agreed to wear when I said I'd take Bodigar."

He summoned a shopping bag from thin air and handed it to her as her face went pale. She had been quick to try and forget about the lingerie she had agreed to the day before.

Zelgadis had walked over to where the other two were, blushing but curious what kind of lingerie Xelloss had picked out for her. He couldn't get a look inside the bag before Lina had taken it and stood up, red faced to the roots of her hair, but surprisingly offering no arguments.

"I guess a deal's a deal." She mumbled embarrassed as she walked into her bathroom to change.

The chimera couldn't believe she had given in so easily. But as he thought about it a little harder, he figured she must be using her philosophy of 'Xelloss gets what he wants, so we might as well pretend we're in control where we can'.

Zelgadis certainly didn't have any complaints about this particular event. He was probably as excited to see Lina in whatever kind of lingerie Xelloss had picked for her as the demon was.

Xelloss sat on her bed and dismissed his staff and cloak into midair, "You may as well make yourself comfortable Zelgadis. She'll likely be a while."

The shaman sat on the bed at arms length from Xelloss, already lacking his cloak since he'd never put it on that morning, but he did decide to remove his boots. "What exactly did you get for her?"

The demon smirked and put a finger to his lips, "I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise."

Zelgadis almost rolled his eyes, he should have known he wouldn't get an answer.

He was drawn from his thoughts when Xelloss pointed to his belt and asked, completely curious and for once not seeming like he already knew the answer, "What's this?"

Zelgadis wasn't wearing his sword, but had on his belt the cursed knife Lina had given him to hang on to the night before. He unclipped it from his belt and held it up so Xelloss could get a better look. At this point in their unique relationship, he didn't think there was any reason to keep the priest from knowing a story like the one associated with the knife. Besides, he'd find out one way or another eventually if he really wanted to.

"We found it yesterday when we bought that dragon's fang for your cuffs." The chimera smirked smugly for a moment at the 'jewelry' Xelloss was still wearing. "I don't know how it ended up in that store, but it was something that was around when Lina and I first met."

The Mazoku raised his eyebrow, clearly intrigued by the information, "Really?" He grabbed the knife out of Zelgadis' hand and inspected it more thoroughly.

"Be careful with that." Zelgadis tried to grab it back from him, "It's got a nasty curse on it."

The demon laughed a little, "I can see that quite clearly. That's really the only reason I noticed it in the first place." He pulled the knife out of its sheath, unaffected by the curse or Zelgadis' worried gasp. "But it's really not that 'nasty' of a curse. As you can see, it only affects humans and I can break it as easily as this." With his words, his hands and the knife started to glow a dark purple and the chimera thought he heard the sound of glass shattering.

The glow subsided and Xelloss showed him the blade, "See? It's just an ordinary knife now. But now you can actually use it instead of it just taking up space." He smiled cheerily and put the blade back in its sheath.

"You fixed it?" Zelgadis looked up in surprise at the sound of Lina's voice, but Xelloss knew she was there already.

She stood at the doorway to the bathroom and looked decidedly unsure of herself in the deep red negligee she was wearing. It was see through and open in the front with lace edges and the color was very close to that of her ballgown. No doubt Xelloss had decided he liked the way she looked in the almost blood color. The sorceress was also wearing matching lace panties that were not see through, but did not cover more than the most important bits.

He answered her question with a cheery smile, "Of course I did. But more importantly, it would seem I was right about that looking good on you. Isn't that right Zelgadis?"

The chimera had been staring at her mutely since she walked in, but at Xelloss' question, he was able to snap out of his reverie somewhat. "Absolutely," He agreed, still halfway lost in thought, unable to add anything more intelligible than that as he appreciated how sexy and cute the girl before him looked. Really, Lina seemed to have a talent for being both things at the same time.

Xelloss motioned for her to come over to them, which she did, still with a red face, but with more certainty to her step than before. As soon as she came up to them, the demon pulled her into his lap and wrapped his arm that didn't have the knife in his hand around her back.

He kissed her on the cheek, "You look stunning, my dear. And though there's no need to be shy anymore, I always enjoy the taste of it."

The sorceress blushed more at the endearment he'd only used a few times before and halfheartedly hit him in the chest, mumbling under her breath, "Shut up."

The Mazoku laughed softly at her uncomfortableness.

After he finished chuckling, he held up the curse-free knife between her and Zelgadis. "Why don't you let me turn this into something more helpful? I was planning on making demon talismans for you both to aid you against sneak attacks from would-be assassins, but this would be a little more useful."

The chimera eyed him suspiciously, already familiar with his line of thinking and aware of how the night already seemed to be playing out. "What do you want in return?"

Xelloss grinned at him and told him in an air of approval, "Ah, Zelgadis, you're getting to know me so well."

Zelgadis was unimpressed as he waited for the proverbial other shoe to drop.

The Mazoku could see he wasn't going to go along with the charade, so he decided it was best to just go ahead and say what the chimera was already expecting. "I only ask for what I've been asking for all along." He smiled seductively at the two of them. "I want you to finally agree to share yourselves with me completely."

Zelgadis felt his face turn hot and he looked away, unable to come up with any retort or reason why they shouldn't after the things they'd already done. Though, Lina was the one to ask, "You would have had us finally agree tonight by using those 'demon talismans' as an excuse too wouldn't you?"

Xelloss simply smiled at her in response, not really answering, but clearly showing to them that she was right.

Lina remembered their endeavors the night before. It had felt so good and she remembered how badly she'd wanted Zelgadis when he'd rubbed himself against her teasingly.

She tried in vain to fight back the blush that stubbornly stayed on her face and nodded her head slowly, "All right. I agree."

Xelloss' face practically split in half. "Wonderful! How about we seal the deal with a kiss then?" He asked her, but gave her no real time to respond before his mouth covered hers in a passionate kiss that stole her breath away. It was a far more heated kiss than what people usually did when they 'sealed a deal with a kiss'.

She ran her fingers through the front locks of his hair that weren't tied back by the low ponytail he'd been wearing since the night of the ball. In return, he had put one hand on her cheek and his other on her hip, kissing her more deeply.

By the time he'd finally pulled away, Lina was already getting aroused and excited by the night to come. When he nibbled at her neck a bit, she'd had to force herself to stop envisioning the things that would happen later so she would be able to remember how to breathe.

The Mazoku chuckled huskily at the lusty emotions she gave off before turning to look at the chimera seductively. "And what about you Zelgadis?"

The display between the other two had made the shaman's thoughts a little distracted, so he had to swallow his heart back down when the demon turned his sultry, piercing gaze on him.

Zelgadis turned away from him to try and regain his thoughts. He clearly remembered Xelloss' declaration the morning before about his plans for taking them and now with the time actually here, he was feeling apprehensive about the demon topping him. After all, Xelloss had lost control of himself only the night before.

Xelloss leaned over the short distance towards Zelgadis. Putting a hand on the chimera's stomach, he pulled him closer and licked the tip of his ear. "There's no need to be afraid Zelgadis. I won't cause you any pain unless you want me to." He nipped his ear slightly and the shaman felt a shiver run through him.

"I wish you would stop reading my emotions." Zelgadis tried to sound angry and did his best to ignore Xelloss licking and nibbling the tip of his overly sensitive ear.

"I can stop myself from reading emotions no more than you can stop yourself from breathing." The demon's answer only lessened Zelgadis' ability to be stubborn as the words tingled his already stimulated ear and sounded like honey.

He still put up a valiant effort to be obstinate, though the impact was lost as his words lacked any bite to them. "You don't have to talk about them so easily at least."

Xelloss didn't comment but ran his hand up the chimera's shirt, trying to get the answer he wanted out of him. "You're getting off topic." His hand began to toy with one of Zelgadis' nipples under the fabric, "I know this is the last night you'll be staying in the palace. Don't you want to take advantage of it?"

Zelgadis was fairly certain the phrase 'seduced by the devil' was invented to describe Xelloss. He grit his teeth briefly before giving up his last chance out of the situation. "Alright. I'll agree too."

Before he knew it, Xelloss had turned his face to him and kissed him just as heatedly as he'd done with Lina. The Mazoku easily controlled the kiss, conveying to Zelgadis how the night would play out. The chimera still did his best to try and take some dominance though. He wasn't just going to accept submission without at least a bit of a fight.

He grabbed the front of Xelloss' shirt roughly, trying his best to get the upper hand. The Mazoku had easily subdued his attempts when his hand, that had lost its glove at some point, traced a clawed nail along the shell of Zelgadis' elfen ear. The chimera gasped involuntarily and he could feel Xelloss' lips curve in a smile into the kiss before he ended it. Sometimes Zelgadis really hated how sensitive the damn things were.

When Xelloss pulled back, he clearly had a look of smug satisfaction.

Zelgadis didn't have a chance to make a comment about it as the demon suddenly shifted Lina from his lap to the chimera's in a swift fluid movement. "Not to break the mood, but I'd like to get this out of the way."

Lina was a little lost as she'd gone from watching her two lovers kiss, to being relocated, to trying to decipher what Xelloss was saying. "What?"

He smirked at her confusion and held up the knife in front of her before putting it on the bed, "I'm turning this into something useful for you remember?"

She only halfway paid attention to him as she shifted in Zelgadis' arms slightly. The position she'd been put in his lap was clearing letting her know just how aroused he'd already become.

Zelgadis held her close and tried not to let her squirming against him get him too riled up before things even began.

Xelloss smiled to himself, sensing their emotions, and tried to hurry up with his task so he could turn his attentions back to them. He already found some material in the bag he'd yet to take off that he could use and set to turning the single knife into two, just like he did with the plushies a few days before.

Lina's attention had been caught again by the magic flames of the spell. "You made a duplicate?"

He held the knives up in his right hand, taking their sheathes off with the other. "Yes, one for each of you of course. A magic blade won't do you much good if one of you is away from the other who carries the only knife."

The humans saw the logic with that and watched with interest as Xelloss dragged both blades along his left hand at the same time. Two lines of his black demonic blood appeared and the substance seemed to flow out and up into the knife blades, as if they were paper absorbing ink.

When the blades were both coated in the black substance they ignited in a demonic black flame. As quickly as it had started, the fire vanished and the blades were left as pristine obsidian colored metal that shined like a mirror with an unnatural surface.

With the subduing cuffs dormant, Xelloss' minor cuts were already gone by the time he put the sheathes back on the blades. "These now have a very small amount of my power in them. Just enough for them to cast a barrier spell when normal weapons are aimed at you. They wouldn't do anything against a weapon of light but at the very least, if normal daggers or arrows get too close to hitting you, the barrier would stop them."

He handed one to Lina when she reached out her hand to take it. She took it out of the sheath and admired the blade. It looked immeasurably sharper than it was before and she had a feeling that it would now slice through a number of different substances as if they were paper.

"I shouldn't have to tell you, but don't sell them." He grinned, but the look in his eyes was serious.

She shoved the blade back into its sheath, "Yeah yeah, I won't. Anyway, why didn't you put the spell on the original knife and then make the copy?"

He took the knife back from her and put it with the other on the nightstand by the bed before dismissing his bag and boots to wherever it was he sent them when he removed them. "Ever so sharp to notice the small things aren't you Lina?"

When the demon returned to sit on the bed again, she looked at him suspiciously, "What's the reason for how you went about making the knives?"

Xelloss chuckled and leaned in close to her, putting a hand on her check. "Well at this point, I suppose I can let you in on a secret." He grinned at her impishly, "I can't actually duplicate already existing magic."

Zelgadis worried she might end up going into one of her tirades as she tensed up in his arms. "So you can't make duplicates of the copy weapons of light?"

When he shook his head happily, she hit him in the chest, "You jerk! You tricked me again!"

When she tried to hit him a second time he caught her arm, "You should expect as much from me by now Lina." He was completely undeterred by her outburst, "Besides, would this one little thing have changed your answer for tonight if you'd known about it beforehand?"

She blushed again at his closeness and what it was he he was asking, "...No."

"So then," He pulled her from Zelgadis' arms and back into his lap, "It's best to just move on right?"

When Xelloss kissed her on the neck seductively and squeezed her backside, any of the arguments she might have had evaporated along with her irritation with him.

Zelgadis was just a little bit irked that the priest had pulled her from his lap. He hadn't even gotten a kiss from her yet.

The Mazoku glanced up at him, having clearly read his emotions regarding Lina, and turned her around in his lap so she would be facing the chimera and resumed kissing her neck from the new position.

The shaman was annoyed Xelloss had read his emotions again, but took the open invitation. Lina certainly didn't mind when he moved in close and kissed her.

He licked her bottom lip and slipped a hand inside the front opening of her negligee, glad that he hadn't put on his fingerless gloves that morning. Her skin was so soft against his own hard flesh, it was always such a stark contrast.

Xelloss' hand slid from her hip to her front until he was caressing her through her panties. She moaned a little into Zelgadis' mouth when the demon's hand rubbed her pleasurably through the thin lace.

She suddenly realized she was the least dressed among them and set to correcting this by pulling up the edge of the chimera's shirt as far as she could manage without his help. Zelgadis took the hint and broke away from the kiss to pull off his shirt over his head and threw it on the floor.

Before he'd had a chance to resume kissing her, Lina climbed off of Xelloss' lap and moved over toward the shaman and began kissing his chest while she was on her hands and knees.

The Mazoku took the opportunity to pull her panties down and moved to kiss her lower back while he began to lightly tease her opening with a clawed finger. She gasped and rocked her hips at his touch before returning her attention to Zelgadis.

Following Xelloss' lead on the pace of their activities, Lina began slowly kissing down the chimera's stomach while her hands worked to tug his pants down just enough to expose his erection.

He sighed her name softly when she began licking his shaft hungrily. She still had a blush on her face but she couldn't be bothered with embarrassment. Not with how rapidly she was being turned on between her two lovers.

Just after she'd taken as much of Zelgadis into her mouth as she could, she moaned when Xelloss inserted a finger into her and moved it in and out deliciously. The vibrations of it had directly affected Zelgadis, who couldn't quite contain his gasp at the sudden pleasurable sensation.

They continued on in this way until Xelloss' talented fingers brought Lina close to the edge and she had to remove the shaman from her mouth so she could breathe. She was able to stroke him with her hand and lick him through her panting but was quickly unable to pay attention to anything but the pleasure the Mazoku was giving her when she began to orgasm. She gasped and bucked into his fingers, riding out the waves until she was left with a look of bliss on her face and her own fluids trickling down her leg.

She was about to continue where she left off with Zelgadis, but Xelloss stopped her, "Why don't you take a moment to catch your breath?" He grinned at the chimera seductively while he rubbed her fluid between his fingers. "I haven't given Zelgadis any attention yet."

As soon as she'd moved away, Xelloss crawled up to the chimera, wasting no time to kiss him passionately and trail his slick fingers down his stomach. Zelgadis bit back a groan when the demon's wet hand grasped his length and started stroking. Instead, he was only half aware when he'd kissed Xelloss more demandingly and started to pull at his clothes.

The Mazoku chuckled softly as he continued to stroke the chimera. Despite Zelgadis' earlier apprehension and his unique mind and body, the chimera was influenced by sexual desire just as any other being was. Xelloss found it amusing that Zelgadis didn't even seem to realize how needy he sometimes acted when in the heat of the moment.

The demon made his disrobing easy by simply willing away what was left of his clothing, leaving him wearing nothing but the cuffs on his wrists and ankles that he was unable to get rid of.

Xelloss was not at all surprised when Lina moved to run a hand along the faux flesh of his back. She had already recovered and was ready for more intimacy.

He was pleasantly surprised, however, when her hand moved to confidently stroke his own arousal. He broke his kiss with Zelgadis to turn and look at her while he continued to pleasure the chimera. She had already removed her panties and she had a deep blush and a lusty look on her face while the hand that wasn't grasping him was curiously touching herself as she watched him continue to stroke Zelgadis.

When she saw him looking at her, she looked embarrassed and cast her glance away as she ceased moving her hand. "No need to stop. In fact," He gently pulled her hand off of himself and moved it towards her own need, "Zelgadis and I would love to watch you pleasure yourself."

Her face turned two shades more red when the chimera's lust filled and hazy eyes turned to her, having heard what Xelloss had said. It was clear by the expression on his face that he was surprised to see her lightly touching herself, but he was also extremely interested in seeing her do much more. Despite that, he tried to ignore the demon's hands on him long enough to tell her, "You don't have to do anything you don't want to Lina."

"Don't be ridiculous, of course she wants to." Xelloss' attentions turned back to Zelgadis for a moment, "Though, I suppose we could trade a show for a show." He grinned wickedly just before pushing the shaman onto his back on the bed and pulled off the rest of his clothing in seemingly one swift motion.

Zelgadis was shocked by the sudden changes but was unable to voice any complaints or protests as he had just as quickly found himself in Xelloss' lap and the demon's mouth had already found one of his nipples.

Xelloss was completely unbothered by the chimera's weight while he continued to lick the rock hard bud. He moved his left hand to Zeldadis' lower back to bring him closer to him, while his right hand gripped both of their erections at the same time.

When the Mazoku began to stroke them both, Zelgadis involuntarily gasped and thrust his hips slightly to increase the friction. He glanced over towards Lina, seeing the girl was completely entranced by the sight of them, he decided to follow Xelloss' lead of putting on a 'show' for her.

Zelgadis dragged his nails roughly along the demon's back, causing him to gasp slightly and speed up the stroking of his hand a bit.

Lina's desire to touch herself returned and she tried to blank her mind and forget about how embarrassing what she was about to do was. Instead, she let her fingers travel down to play with her own opening.

Eventually, both of her lover's glances turn to watch her, though still continuing to elicit gasps and moans from each other with their actions. She bit her bottom lip and tried to focus her attention on the erotic exhibit she was witnessing rather than their eyes on her as she began rubbing her own clit.

She mewled in ecstasy when she rubbed it in just the right way that it sent a wave of pleasure through her. The sorceress rocked her hips slightly at her own touches and after a while, decided she should try slipping a finger inside.

"Oh gods." Zelgadis moaned as he saw her start to pump her fingers in and out of herself. He thrust himself against Xelloss' hand and the demon's erection unconsciously. He had began to orgasm before Xelloss quickly squeezed the base of his shaft tightly, preventing his release.

"Now, now. I can't let you spoil my plans by doing that just yet." Xelloss grinned wickedly and continued to keep his grip tight until Zelgadis' body had calmed.

The chimera dug his fingers harshly into Xelloss' shoulders, gasping to find his breath. "You bastard," He managed to say halfheartedly, the staved off orgasm served to heightened his senses and his arousal.

Xelloss closed his eyes in his effort to remain in control and in focus when Zelgadis had dug his nails into his shoulders, trying to not let the pleasurable pain make him lose his concentration. So far, he had done really well about keeping himself in check and not letting Lina's previous orgasm effect him too much. He had a feeling he was able to keep himself together only because Zelgadis hadn't come yet. If the Mazoku had to handle the effects of both of them, he wasn't sure how long he would last until he started to lose control again.

Lina had unhooked the single front clasp in the front of her negligee and had begun rubbing one of her breasts. Her eyebrows were creased in frustration as she pumped two of her fingers in and out of herself furiously in her attempt to make herself orgasm as she watched the two men.

Xelloss couldn't wait anymore now that, finally, both of his lovers wanted it all just as badly as he did.

He kissed Zelgadis passionately and gently pushed him off his lap and onto the bed. Squeezing his ass, he told the shaman with a lusty grin, "Remember what I told you yesterday and be patient for just a little bit."

Of course Zelgadis knew what he was talking about. He had thought about it a lot since the demon first said it to him. So he was already expecting it when Xelloss kissed him once more and pulled away from him, shifting most of his attention to Lina. The chimera tried not to let the loss of contact bother him and did his best to focus on what was going on between his two lovers right then instead of what Xelloss would be doing to him very soon.

Xelloss took the hand Lina had been touching herself with by the wrist and brought it up towards his face. He glanced at the slick soaked fingers before grinning at her lustily. "Your own tiny fingers don't seem to be enough to satisfy you."

She blushed darkly at him pointing out that she had been masturbating for them to see but was quickly distracted from her embarrassment when he licked her wet fingers seductively.

He slowly freed her of the rest of her negligee and gently pushed her to lay down on the bed. "I can satisfy you though." He nibbled her on the neck and pushed her legs apart with this thigh and coaxed her into lifting one of her knees up with the hand that wasn't propping himself up above her. The Mazoku could sense that her desire was turning into nervousness rapidly, but he wasn't going to give her the chance to change her mind at the last moment.

Xelloss raised himself up so he could clearly see her face. He worked hard for this moment and he was definitely going to store it away in his memories. He thrust into her in one quick motion, already knowing that she was so wet that she would have no discomfort, and delighted in watching her facial expressions as he started moving his hips.

"Xelloss!" Lina gasped in surprise and pleasure as he filled her and gave her no time to get used to the sensation before moving in and out. She immediately realized just how much having fingers inside of her paled in comparison to this.

The sorceress quickly felt the need to hold on to something, anything, so she wrapped her arms around Xelloss' shoulders and her legs around his hips as he continued to thrust into her and began nibbling on her neck again.

Lina promptly realized that wrapping her legs around Xelloss made her feel more pleasure than when her legs were left to rest on the bed. She arched her back, pressing her torso into his chest more as her body started to spasm.

The demon grinned and leaned back to hook her knees over his elbows and continued to drive into her while he slowly leaned forward, pushing her legs up so he could penetrate her further.

With the new position, Lina immediately started to feel her feet tingle and she thought her legs might be melting as she began to climax harder than she ever had before. She started to scream random garbled words in her pleasure, unable to even realize or care that she was making so much noise.

Her screams were like music to Xelloss but somewhere in the back of his mind he was glad he had inconspicuously put that silence spell on the bedroom door when he had closed it. He might have had to kill anyone who interrupted them at this point.

It was only due to the demon's centuries worth of experience that he was able to keep himself from his own orgasm when Lina's already tight walls squeezed around him even more, and much more of her wetness flowed over his cock and dripped down his legs when she came. He had to grit his teeth to keep his concentration, but was able to continue thrusting his hips into her until she had ridden out her ecstasy.

Since the first moment he slipped into her, Xelloss finally stopped his movements and put her legs back down to rest on the bed, moving to kiss her. She wrapped her arms back around his shoulders and kissed him back as much as she could while she panted for air.

He kissed her up under her chin and giggled at how thoroughly satisfied and out of breath she was. Her mind blowing orgasm was already working with her previous climax to effect his own mind. As much as he wanted to give her more, he needed to give Zelgadis attention and take care of his own needs, or else the night might end up much like the previous one.

Xelloss pulled out of her and showered her face with kisses while she was busy trying to summon her brain back from wherever it floated in space.

"I hope you enjoyed yourself my dear." He propped his head up on his hand beside her and smiled ridiculously happily at her when she nodded dazedly. "If it's alright with you, I think it's Zelgadis' turn to sit up in those lofty clouds you find yourself in right now."

Lina's brain still hadn't quite returned to normal function yet, but she was able to process that he was telling her he was going to spend time with Zelgadis. That was fine with her. She thought her senses might overload if she had another orgasm anytime soon.

She nodded her head for a second time and made a half wave, half salute gesture with her shaky hand. "Alright. No problem." As much as she enjoyed her post climactic euphoria, she really hoped her ability to communicate properly returned soon.

Xelloss kissed her on the cheek. Sitting up on his knees on the bed, he turned his attention back to Zelgadis.

The chimera had been unable to keep his hand from drifting down to touch his own erection while he had watched Lina and Xelloss. Of course the Mazoku had known, but hadn't said anything before since it was apparent that Zelgadis had only been keeping himself aroused rather than trying to make himself come.

"You've been so compliant tonight Zelgadis." Xelloss kissed his chest and ran a hand up each of his outer thighs. "I will have to reward you for that."

The chimera grit his teeth and looked away embarrassed while the demon continued to lavish him with attention. "Don't start thinking I've become some obedient, submissive bottom or something. I just know there's no way to change your mind about how the rest of this will go and I realize there's not really anything I can do about it either."

Xelloss smirked up at the shaman and abruptly pushed him back onto the bed. "You would be right about that. But still, I will make sure you enjoy every moment of it." He slowly trailed kisses and playful bites down Zelgadis' torso.

The chimera drew in a shaky breath when Xellos began to lick up his length at the same time he started playfully circling his entrance with a finger that was still overly wet from Lina.

The Mazoku began pleasuring him with his mouth while his finger continued to simply rubbed against his hole teasingly. It wasn't until Zelgadis had become almost completely distracted by Xelloss' mouth that he finally slipped a finger slowly inside of him.

The shaman's eyebrows creased and bit his bottom lip. He wasn't sure he liked the feeling of Xelloss' finger in him. It felt uncomfortable and bizarre and only felt marginally better when the demon began slowly moving his finger in and out. However, when the digit curled and expertly hit a certain spot, he could instantly see the appeal of this kind of activity.

Zelgadis moaned and he arched his back and involuntarily flexed his hips a few times back and forth between Xelloss' mouth and his finger.

The demon chuckled at his reaction, the vibrations sending more marvelous sensations across his body, causing him to impulsively grab one of Xelloss' front locks of hair and tug at it slightly.

He moaned, which subsequently made Zelgadis tug harder. They both wanted Xelloss to pick up the pace, so he added another finger and started using his free hand to stroke the little bit of the chimera that wasn't in his mouth.

When both fingers rubbed up against that sensitive place inside of him, Zelgadis immediately started to see stars. Xelloss was again quick to stop his climax from happening however. He squeezed the base of his cock while he continued to move his fingers and mouth, his other actions completely unaffected by the shaman's near release or the desperate thrusting of his hips.

After his body had mostly calmed down again, Zelgadis was beyond frustrated. He wasn't sure if it was his demon third or completely his own sexual frustration that made him yank Xelloss up to his own face by his hair.

The only reason he'd been able to do so was because he'd caught the Mazoku completely off guard. Xelloss hadn't been expecting such a forceful reaction, though he should have.

Zelgadis roughly kissed him and lightly bit his lip with one of his fangs before demanding, "Would you just get on with it already?"

Xelloss grinned at him with devilish lust, "If I 'get on with it' now, it will hurt you, you know."

The chimera yanked on his hair again, "Do you think that would really bother me?"

The demon sighed in contentment at the rough treatment before scraping his clawed nails harshly down one of Zelgadis' sides, to which the man gasped and moaned.

"No, I suppose not."

He lifted the chimera's thighs up slightly on either side of his waist before slowly pushing his erection, still drenched in Lina's slick fluids, into Zelgadis' entrance.

Xelloss tried to focus on the myriad of emotions that ran across Zelgadis' face rather than the intense tightness. Being what it was, the chimera was much tighter than Lina and the Mazoku had to bite his bottom lip and try with all his might not to start slamming into the body beneath him. Zelgadis' emotions of pleasure and pain along with the effects of Lina's orgasms still effecting his mind did nothing to help Xelloss remain in control of himself.

The demon dug his nails into Zelgadis' hips and kept himself still until he was sure he would be able to control his impulses. This worked out to the other man's favor as it gave him some time to adjust to Xelloss inside of him as well as give him some masochistic ecstasy.

Even through his foggy brain, Zelgadis had realized he shouldn't move his hips until Xelloss did first. After what happened the night before, he could sense the Mazoku was trying extremely hard to keep it from repeating.

By the time Xelloss started moving in and out of him, he was more than ready to continue as well and rocked his hips, mind already starting to get lost again in pain tinted pleasure.

The demon's hand reached down between them and started stroking Zelgadis in time with his thrusts, which caused him to gasp and bite Xelloss on his shoulder without realizing it.

The demon moaned and his carefully maintained control broke. He moved the chimera's thighs up higher and positioned himself where he could get more leverage and began slamming into him while he pumped his erection.

Whatever might have been left of Zelgadis' reservation and his mind burst into flames. He wasn't even really aware of his body's movements when he wrapped one of his legs around Xelloss' hips and dug his fingers into the arm that the demon was using to prop himself up on as he leaned over Zelgadis, pounding into him.

Xelloss had wanted to take the chimera from behind as well, but he'd have to leave that for another night. They were both already teetering dangerously close to falling over the edge.

At least he could get one last thing he wanted from the usually stubborn, stand-offish chimera from this first time together. Thankfully, Xelloss had been able to retain enough of his mind that he'd only lost control of himself in the regular sense of sexual interactions. If he'd lost complete control of himself like he had before, the evening would have ended completely different than he had wanted instead of just slightly.

"Zelgadis, look at me." Xelloss grabbed his face with the hand that was previously keeping himself propped up on the bed and continued thrusting into the chimera. When Zelgadis' glance met his eyes from behind his own half lidded, dazed ones, he finished telling him, "I want you to look at me as you come and know that it was me who gave you this."

He immediately angled his hips slightly and hit the bundle of nerves that he'd been avoiding since he'd entered the chimera. The effects were immediate and Zelgadis' breath was stolen as he climaxed. White hot seed erupted from him and coated his stomach and Xelloss' hand as it continued to pump his cock. His orgasm was so intense, it felt like someone had ripped his consciousness out of his body and was burning every bit of himself that he could feel with a pleasant fire. Despite biting his lip, he couldn't keep himself from voicing his mind altering pleasure. He arched his back while he dug his nails into the arm of the hand that was still holding his face, keeping his eyes on the demon above him, though he would later tell himself it was more out of rapture than obedience.

Xelloss gasped as he was suddenly squeezed tighter by Zelgadis' insides at the same moment he was hit by the chimera's overwhelming emotions of pleasure. His eyebrows creased and he couldn't stop himself from making some vocalizations of his own as he came hard into his young lover. He felt what seemed like electricity run between his fingers and out into the rest of his body. It tingled and sparked as he kept up his movements until both he and Zelgadis' had ridden out their climaxes.

Everything about the night had been so much more satisfying that the demon could ever remember experiencing with lovers in the past. Though he was convinced it was probably only because he couldn't remember that many previous experiences in such detail. The present often seemed more influential than the past, especially when past events were often centuries ago. Despite any of that, Xelloss was incredibly pleased, both sexually and with his sense of accomplishment at finally bedding Lina and Zelgadis and taking their respective first times.

Xelloss had won the game and there would be no rematches.

After relishing for a few long moments in all the fabulous sensations of pleasure, Zelgadis' emotions and his own achievements, Xelloss removed himself from the shaman and kissed him, completely uncaring when his stomach got smeared with Zelgadis' seed.

"I'm sure I exceeded your expectations." Xelloss laid on top of the chimera, leaning on his elbows to prop his face up.

Zelgadis was finally starting to catch his breath, but of course he had to use what little he had regained to tell the Mazoku off. "Do you even know how to be anything other than smug?"

The demon grinned, "Do you know how to be anything other than grouchy?"

"He's got you there Zel." Xelloss and Zelgadis looked over to see Lina chuckling.

After she had recovered from her own time with the demon, she had watched the two men together. It had been quite a sight and she had wished she hadn't already felt over stimulated from her own sex with Xelloss or she would have attempted touching herself again as she watched them. At the very least, she would remember what she'd seen for a very long time to come. She was sure the memory would keep her warm at night sometime in the future when she found herself alone in bed.

Xelloss smiled brightly at the sorceress and she noticed something. "Your eyes are glowing again."

The demon shrugged, completely unbothered. "I still don't know why it's happening. But, they eventually returned to normal after last night so I'm not worried about it."

"If you don't mind getting off me now, I'd like to get clean." Zelgadis was becoming increasingly aware of the fluids that coated his body and was beginning to drip onto the sheets. He certainly hoped demon seed didn't have any sort of strange effects. The shaman felt it was best not to even think about it.

"You're always so good at ruining the mood." Xelloss pouted cutely but rolled off of him.

"You're one to talk."

He sat up on the bed but before he got off it he paused for a moment, then impulsively kissed Xelloss tenderly.

Zelgadis' cheeks were slightly pink as he got off the bed. "There, I hope you're satisfied now."

Xelloss smirked at him, "Oh I am. In more ways than you realize."

The chimera tried to ignore him and walked towards the bathroom to get himself cleaned up. Despite everything they had just done, he was still self-conscious of his body and wished he could use a sheet to cover himself up as he walked, but he knew it would only ruin the fabric further than it likely already was.

So much for not destroying anymore of the palace bedding. At least they'd be gone on their travels before the maids found this particular messy bed.

After Zelgadis closed the bathroom door, Lina turned to Xelloss. "You're not going to just disappear now that you got what you wanted from us are you?"

The demon regarded her for a moment, very interested to sense some worry coming from the girl. He smiled at her and kissed her deeply before telling her, "There will be countless more nights like tonight before I will have gotten everything I want from you both." It wasn't any sort of romantic declaration, but it was enough for Lina to know he wouldn't be up and leaving them anytime soon.

After they had all cleaned up and the sheets were rearranged, the trio fell asleep, wrapped in each others arms. The humans were worn out and pleasantly satisfied, while the demon decided to fall asleep mostly to pass the time. He would have enjoyed more activities with his young lovers but realized they were limited by human stamina. Waiting until the next opportunity they had for more intimacy would have to do. He'd waited patiently for years to get them in bed, waiting another day or two for more would be easy.

Sometime just before dawn, Xelloss awoke to a bizarre feeling.

He opened his eyes and sat up in bed, Lina's arm sliding off its resting place on his chest with his movement. He blinked a few times, trying to pinpoint what the sensation was. What had woken him up seemed to be some sort of strange combination of his Astral Body feeling somewhat off balance and a burning of power behind his left eye. He covered it with his hand, trying to figure out what was happening.

He was a bit out of sorts and distracted, so he was surprised when Lina's voice cut through the silent night. "Xelloss, are you alright?"

Astonishingly, Lina had actually been stirred awake when her arm had fallen from Xelloss' movements. Beside her, Zelgadis was beginning to wake up, ever the light sleeper.

The Mazoku didn't know if he was alright or not. Something was definitely different. "I'm not sure."

He removed the hand that had been rubbing at his left eye to try and lessen the odd feeling. When he did, he heard both Lina and Zelgadis suddenly draw in breath.

"Something's weird with your eye." Lina pointed at him.

Xelloss creased his eyebrows and frowned. If his eyes were simply glowing again, she shouldn't have been so concerned.

He leaned over to the nightstand by his side of the bed and grabbed one of the knives he had fixed earlier in the evening. Unsheathing it, he was able to see his reflection in the black mirror surface. What he saw would have made his heart stop if he'd had one.

His right eye had gone back to its normal appearance, but the iris of his left eye was mostly a silver white glow that swirled with small streaks of red and blue. The wisps of color moved and drifted like magic and flowed like the aura that was emitted from all living beings.

Xelloss thought his skin might have suddenly gone pale. He really hoped the appearance of his eye didn't mean what he thought it did.

He looked at Lina and Zelgadis with surprisingly obvious worry, "I'm sorry but I must see Zelas-sama right away."

Neither of his lovers had anytime to say anything before he vanished, the knife that had been in his hand falling to land on the bed.

Countless miles away he reappeared on Wold Pack Island, fully dressed and in his mistress's chambers.

The Beastmaster had been lounging on a large pile of pillows with Luna's sleeping head resting on her lap. The disarray of their clothing and a tangled sheet left little doubt as to what they might have been up to earlier in the night.

The Demon Lord took one look at her subordinate's open eyes and any of the good mood she might have had before disintegrated. "Xelloss. What have you done?"

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><p>AN<p>

16 chapters in and they finally have sex! Damn, that was a long time coming. I hope it was worth the wait :D

When I originally wrote the first chapter of this story, I thought I'd have them have sex by like the fifth chapter max and then that would be the end of the story. But Xelloss went and added a plot! LOL It's all his fault.

I know I didn't really mention Zelgadis while Xelloss was having sex with Lina or Lina while it was Xel/Zel, that's because I wanted to focus on just that pair while they were having their first time together :D Don't worry tho! From here on out, whenever the trio is together for sexy time, there will be more of a 'group participation' mwahaha!

It's so awkward writing sex scenes.. but more so when using certain words ^_^;; I hope my word selection wasn't too flowery but wasn't too dirty. I was going for a sort of middle ground.

Originally, I had written some stuff in my notes (three years ago when I'd wrote the earlier parts of this story) about what Xelloss did with that cursed knife. But I changed my plans for it and couldn't use what I'd come up with then. But I still think what I had was kinda funny, so I'll share it you :D When I quickly write out scenes in my notes they're mostly dialogue with text emotes. The site doesn't like sideways facing arrows but all of those :D faces are supposed to be little devil faces lol

It's nothing great but enjoy this short, seriously loosely wrtten interlude :D

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><p>Xelloss fixes up the knife. Removes the curse and uses his demon blood to incorporate it with something a little stronger than Astral Vine. Blade is black and can be returned to the owner.<p>

Lina: Changing a useless item back into a useful one.

Xelloss: Perhaps by now I've moved up to be ranked higher than 'useful item number four'

Lina: you've moved up to useful item number one!

Zelgadis: So what does that make me -_- useful item number two?

Lina: uh… no. you're usefeul item alpha!

Xelloss: Oho! Nice save Lina, but I think it would be better to refer to Zelgadis as Useful Item 'A'. It would be incorrect to call him 'Alpha' as I'm clearly the Alpha male here. *snicker*

Zel: Who the hell says that?!

Xel: I'd be more than happy to let you fight me for the _position_ of alpha, but we both already know I would be the victor.

Zel: :D oh? Bind! Restrain!

Xelloss' bracelets and anklets bind him.

Zel: Seems to me like I can take the dominant role whenever I feel like it more than you can now. That would make _me_ alpha.

Xel: *struggle* This is cheating!

Zel: Since when do you ever play anything fair? If you were me you'd do the exact same thing.

Xel: ^_^;; ….perhaps we should put joking aside as well as any comparisons to the wolf pack and consider ourselves equals in our personal endeavors… However I think as far as battle strength goes we can all agree that I still claim the role of superior.

Lina: oh? I don't suppose you remember a little incident concerning the Lord of Nightmares and the possible destruction of the entire world? If we're playing the one-upping game then I'm pretty sure I'm the winner of that one.

Xel: Ah. But technically that wasn't really you, but the Golden Lord called to our world and using your body as a vessel.

Lina : . ….. :D well as Zel reminded you with our newest favorite objects, you don't have to be the strongest to be the one in control. Strength doesn't count for everything all of the time.

Xel: ^_^;;; …. Ah… so it would seem this is true

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><p>Please review! Pakota will let you stay in the palace if you do! :D<p> 


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